The Chaos Before and during Christmas
by Chibi Wingzero
Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party. Shounen ai warning!
1. Christmas Party?

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (1/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: Christmas Party?

----7 days before Christmas----

The sounds of clicking echoed through the silent room. A solitary figure sat behind the desk, furiously typing. He frowned in frustration. It were times like this, he hated being the president and owner of his company. He had been working hard to perfect his latest program. The unveiling of it had been pushed back too many times for his liking, and his employees weren't helping either. Didn't these people have better things to do than to interrupt him? They were a bunch of slackers anyways. Why did he hire them in the first place? Good help was hard to find.

For the past couple of weeks, he received more calls or visits, involving a request to have Christmas day off. They said something along the lines of spending time with their family. What a waste of time. They spend enough time with their family during the rest of the year. Why do they need that particular day off? He never did understand it.

A knock on his door interrupted his thoughts. The door opened to reveal his secretary or personal assistance as the politically correct called it. He raised a brow at her very form fitting outfit and how much skin she revealed despite the low temperature. It was blatantly obvious she was trying to seduce him and failing miserably. He mentally noted to fire her as soon as he found a replacement. That third rate duelist could even do a better job than her.

"Kaiba-sama," she said meekly while fidgeting with a folder in her hands. She cast a nervous glance at her ice cold boss. Maybe she can melt that ice around his hearts, one of these days.

Seto scowled at her hesitance. It was a waste of his valuable time. "Get to the point. I don't have all day."

"I have the reports you requested," she hastily replied, not wanting to upset her irritable boss. Besides, it wouldn't be good for her to get on Seto's bad side. She walked over to his desk, making sure she didn't look like an idiot. It was the last thing she needed. When she reached his desk, she shyly handed over the folder.

"It's about time," Seto scowled, snatching the folder from her. He glared at her when he saw her lingering around his desk. She certainly took her time giving him the report. "Is there anything else?"

"I was wondering if you received my request for Christmas Day," she inquired nervously. There was a slight chance she may receive the day off with all the overtime she did and the fact she submitted her request early.

-Not another one. Why doesn't it surprise me?- Seto thought miserably. He had more than half his employees approach him with requests or send him requests via e-mail or letter. "I have received your request and have looked it over." She looked hopefully at him, believing she was going to get the day off. "Request denied."

Her hopes and dreams sank faster than the Titanic. "But sir my…."

Cold blue eyes bore down on her. "I don't care if your family is visiting. That day is a work day. There will be no exceptions." –Not even me.-

"Yes sir," she complied rather easily. She bowed to him as protocol dictated before leaving the room. One way or another she would melt that ice of his. Little did she know, she didn't stand a chance against a certain blond.

Opening the folder, Seto smirked as he went over the latest numbers. Sales have more than tripled with Christmas fast approaching. It was pretty much the only thing he liked about this holiday. What was the point in buying people gifts for this one day? Well, at least it helped his company so he could care less.

After reviewing the numbers, Seto went to sit in his chair. There were still a few bugs in his program, and he wanted to finish fixing them before he headed back home. It wasn't like he had to hurry since there was no school the next day. At the same time, he didn't want to waste any more time than necessary.

About an hour later, someone opened his office door and bounded to him. That person stopped short of his desk and was apparently waiting to be acknowledged. How rude. Seto had half a mind to fire that person right then and there. He hated being interrupted, especially when he was tight on time.

"I'm busy," Seto stated coldly, not bothering to look away from his monitor. He was able to fix one of the bugs, but the other three were giving him a hard time.

"Niichan is to busy for me?" The familiar voice inquired with amusement. He giggled when his brother realized it was him and not one of his employees.

This time Seto gave Mokuba his full attention after having saved his program. "What brings you here?" He noticed that look in Mokuba's eyes. It usually he meant he wanted something that Seto normally wouldn't agree to in the first place.

"I was wondering if we could have a Christmas party," Mokuba requested. He rocked back and forth on his heels while his hands were clasped behind his neck. In the past, it was just him and his brother. Now that he had real friends, he wanted to spend time with them.

Upon hearing the request, Seto raised a brow. Christmas for them was having dinner and exchanging presents. They didn't do anything special for the day. Hell, Seto didn't take the day off, but he made sure not to work late so he could spend some time with his brother.

"I'll have the cook make a special Christmas dinner then," Seto informed Mokuba. He was about to continue his work when he heard his brother protest.

His hands were no longer behind his neck and he stopped rocking on his heels. "I meant an actual party. You know, the type you invite friends." Mokuba had unknowingly puffed up his cheeks. He tended to do that when he was pouting or became annoyed.

Seto sighted for the hundredth time that day. His employees were annoying the hell out of him, and now Mokuba was being stubborn. "Why do you want to have a Christmas party?" He might as well find the source of the change and then conjure some excuse as to why they should not have a Christmas party in the first place.

The younger Kaiba didn't take much time to think about his answer. It was as if he planned this. "I want to spend time with my friends, and I'm not talking about those pretending to be my friends." Being the younger brother of a billionaire had its perks, but it also had its fair share in drawbacks. Many people wanted to be his friends so they could get something or become closer to Seto. He learned that at an early age when his 'friends' were only interested in his cool toys.

"You can see your friends any time," Seto reminded him. His eyes were now fixated on the screen. He had work to do and the request was a silly one in his opinion, though he wasn't going to tell Mokuba that.

"But Seto," Mokuba whined a little. He was used to having his way unless it was unrealistic. More to the point, he rarely asked Seto for anything, since he knew his older brother was busy with school and work. "I don't ask for much. Please let me have this party."

"This discussion is over," Seto stated as if it was set in stone. He went through each line of code, mentally keeping track of the data. Suddenly, he felt someone standing next to him. It was his brother looking at him with those puppy dog eyes. Seto turned his head so he couldn't see those eyes. Damn Yugi for teaching Mokuba that.

-Don't look. Don't look. Absolutely do not look!- And he looked. –Dammit!- "Fine, you can have that Christmas party of yours." He hoped Mokuba wouldn't invite Yugi and his gang. It was the last thing he needed, more stress.

"Thank you!" Mokuba chirped before pouncing on Seto to give him a big hug. After prying himself off his brother, he whipped out his cell phone and punched in the number. A minute later someone answered the phone. "Hello Yugi."

-It just had to be him.- Seto dryly thought. Well, it could have been worse.

"I talked to Seto and he's letting me have a Christmas party," Mokuba beamed as if he won a tournament. Considering the drastic measures he had to use, it was equal to that.

-More like persuaded. - The brunette scowled. It was a cheap shot!

"Yeah, there's something you can do. Tell the others. Oh and don't forget to keep your dark spirits in line. I'm sure Seto doesn't appreciate having his property stolen or his staff being threatened."

-What the hell? - Seto thought before falling out of his chair with an audible thump. There was no way he would allow that tomb robber or that psychotic Egyptian in his mansion. Out of the three, Yami was the most tolerable and sane one. He adjusted himself to a sitting position.

"What about him?" Mokuba inquired with curiosity. A mischievous smile made its way across his face.

- Him? - Seto's curiosity was starting to peak.

"I'm sure Seto wouldn't mind," Mokuba assured Yugi. He had one of those smirks on his face. "I think he would want him to come."

-Just who is this person? - Seto thought with much frustration, though he never showed it.

"Could you ask him what he would like for Christmas?" Mokuba asked hopefully. He must have received the answer he wanted since he couldn't keep still. "I'll make sure to tell Seto that. Bye!"

"Who is he?" Seto inquired as his brother closed the connection and put away his cell phone. It was then he realized he looked foolish talking to his brother from the floor. He promptly rectified it by standing up.

Mokuba smirked and cheekily replied, "Jou." Before Seto even registered the person's name, the younger Kaiba had already scampered out the door.

"……………… Damn!"

-------------------------

Hm….. I wonder what Mokuba and Yugi have planned. XP


	2. A Little Mall Mayhem Never Hurts Anyone

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (2/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

E-mail: 

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: A Little Mall Mayhem Never Hurts Anyone

----6 days before Christmas----

Jou sighed as he trudged behind his three friends. Just yesterday, Yugi had been practically bouncing off the walls when he announced the good news. Now he had to figure out what to buy Seto for Christmas. The brunette had everything and well, he had barely enough money to buy decent gifts for his friends. If he tightened his budget and worked more hours, then he might be able to buy something nice for his secret crush. Who was he kidding? Seto most likely owned whatever he planned to give.

This afternoon, Yugi managed to convince him to go shopping for Christmas presents. He said if he waited until the last minute like he usually did there would be nothing good left. His best friend had a point. Most of the good stuff was usually bought and the crappy ones left over. Since he didn't want to look like a loser for the party, he decided to buy his presents ahead of time with the money he saved. He bought his sister a plushie of her favorite duel monster. For Honda, he found some cool accessories for his motorcycle. It was easy to figure out what Yugi and Yami wanted. They were still both very much into duel monsters, though he had to hide that present. As for Ryou and Bakura, he had no idea what the latter wanted so he bought them a couple books. For his father, he bought actual food and picked up a few brochures on alcohol abuse. He figured the guy needed a wake up call. Most likely, he was going to become drunk and pass out. Perhaps then he would wake up and realize what kind of life he was leading. For Anzu, he bought her a CD of dance music, figuring she could use it for when she practiced. It was the thought that counted. Jou wasn't sure what to get Otogi, but he found something the guy could use, though he was sure that the dice master was going to be completely embarrassed when he opened his present. As for Malik and Marik, he decided to go with something to clean their jewelry.

Still, that left him with one person. He could buy something small and then wait until he saved enough money. On second thought, it would be next Christmas before he had enough so scratch that idea. He knew Seto was still heavily into duel monsters as he challenged Yami almost every time they met. Well, he could buy any duel monster card he wanted. Plus, Jou had enough money to just buy the common cards. Seto was also into technology, but those cost an arm and a leg. Jou was very attacked to both appendages.

"Earth to Jou," Yugi called, his hand waving in front of said blonde's face. At least he tried to wave. With all the bags he was carrying, it was a wonder that he didn't collapse or fall over. When his best friend's eyes became focused, he stopped waving and smiled. Nothing could get him down at a time like this, especially not with what he had planned for the blond. "I was wondering if you recently acquired a darker half."

"Eh?" Jou asked, completely confused. He saw Ryou suppressing his giggles and Malik snickering. "I don't get it."

"You've been spacing out," Malik pointed out the obvious. He managed to watch where he was going, since he didn't want to run into a post. That was his yami's job! For some reason or another, Marik always ran into a post at least once a day if not more. "So that means you either have a dark spirit or a crush on a special someone."

As soon as he saw Jou blush, Ryou knew the answer. By the looks on Yugi's and Malik's faces, they also knew as well. "I wonder who this special someone could be. Maybe that person is from our school." He had purposely left out the gender of the person, because it would be obvious that they knew.

"Whoever said I liked anyone," Jou scoffed, though his blush became a brighter shade of red. He looked away from the group as if pouting. It was his love life or lack of it.

Yugi sighed. It was the same way with him and Yami before they confessed. In fact, he was surprised they didn't drown in denial. He thought Yami thought of him as a younger brother. Yami, on the other hand, was thinking along the same lines. It wasn't until Yami acquired a body did they confess and at the same time too, which then led to passionate kissing.

"Yug', what was that for?" Jou inquired a bit rudely. He heard the smallest member of the group sigh in response to his statement. Suddenly, he felt something hit that back of his head. "What did I do?" If it was possible, steam would have been coming out of his ears.

Malik just rolled his violet eyes. "Everyone knows you have a crush so why don't you make it easy on yourself and confess?" He crossed his arms over his chest and waited for a response. It was rather uncomfortable with all the bags he was carrying, but somehow he managed.

-Was I that obvious?- Jou thought as he looked over at his friends. Yugi always had a knack for solving puzzles. Ryou was a smart kid. As for Malik, he didn't know nor did he ever want to find out either. –Wait a second! If he said everyone, then that must mean….- He mentally groaned. –That means I'm never going to hear the end of it from Honda.- He looked over at Yugi for confirmation.

"Sorry to say this, but yes, everyone does know," Yugi regretfully replied. He hated being the bearer of bad news, but sometimes it had to be done. "There is some good news."

"And that would be?" Jou inquired, frustrated out of his mind. He didn't see anything good about having the entire school knowing he had a crush.

"They don't know who she is," Ryou answered this time, "or in your case he." This caused Jou to nearly fall over in shock if Malik hadn't been there to push him back into an upright position.

"But how," Jou whispered as if scared to know the answer.

"It wasn't too hard to figure out who you liked," Yugi answered with a huge smile on his face. Jou thought it was going to split his face wide open if his smile became any larger. "When you thought no one was looking, you took peeks at him. Sometimes, you would even stare." The other two nodded their heads to this. At one point or another, they caught Jou looking at him.

-Just great. Not only do they know I'm into guys, they know who.- Jou knew he could trust them to keep a secret. After all, they haven't told anyone so far, or at least he hoped so. "Promise you won't tell anyone about this especially him, please?" Gods, he hated begging, but it was better than doing it in front of him.

"Tell anyone about what?" Yugi innocently inquired. He practically reinvented the art of innocence.

"About liking…. You know," Jou said nervously as if he was trying to keep an important secret. He started to fidget with the handles of his bags.

Malik slowed down his speed so that he was closer to Jou. "I don't know anyone by the name of 'You Know.'" He glanced over at the other two and winked at them. "What about you guys?"

"Nope," Ryou answered, shaking his head.

"Same here," Yugi agreed. It had been part of his plan. He was going to invite Jou to buy Christmas presents, but somehow Malik and Ryou became involved in it.

"That I like Seto," Jou practically screamed before quickly shutting his mouth when his friends stopped walking and were giving him grins. He had just called Kaiba by his first name and confessed that he liked the brunette. Those little sneaks, somehow they managed to trick him into confessing.

"So what are you going to get him?" Yugi asked, breaking the tension filled air. He already talked to Mokuba about what his brother wanted. Seto didn't have anything he wanted, which was no surprise, but they knew different. He wanted something, more like a certain someone. Too bad they couldn't wrap that someone and give him as a present.

"I don't know," Jou sighed, finding the floor to be very interesting at the moment. Ever since he heard about the invitation, he had been trying to come up with an idea, but so far he struck out every time. "He has everything he wants. So what are you getting your special someone?" He wanted to change the subject and this may help him come up with ideas for his present.

"I bought Bakura a few gory moves since there is no way I'm giving him a weapon," Ryou shuddered at the thought of his yami with a sharp object on Christmas. It wouldn't be a pretty sight. He pitied those poor carolers. They didn't do anything to deserve Bakura's wrath.

"Knowing Marik, he probably wants something we can play with during sex," Malik said as if he was talking about the weather and not his personal life. "There's a store that sells those kinds of things, but they're closed for today. I'll come back tomorrow when they're open." This caught Jou completely off guard. He wasn't expecting those two to go that far so soon.

Yugi gave Jou a worried look. "Are you okay?" Do you need to lie down or something?" That shade of white wasn't a good sign for the blond. Besides, it didn't suit him.

"I'm fine," Jou assured his best friend with a small smile before glaring at Malik. "It wasn't the answer I was expecting. That's all."

"You did ask," Ryou mentioned that fact. He glanced at his watch, realizing that they should start going. "We'd better be taking our leave. The mall is going to be closing soon." He turned to head towards the nearest exit.

"But I haven't gotten anything for him," Jou protested. He knew he was going to blow the rest of his money on junk food. If he bought Seto's present today, then he would have something to give, even if it wasn't as nice as he wanted it to be.

"You still have five more days," Yugi reminded him. Carrying all those bags was a work out for him. He knew he was going to feel it tomorrow, but it was worth it. "If you can't think of anything, then try making him something. After all, it's the thought that counts."

"Yeah," Jou whispered, his eyes shining and voice full of hope. "That's what I'll do! I'll make him a present!" In his reverie, he didn't notice his friends start to walk off. "Hey, wait for me!" He ran towards them until something caught his eye. Before any of the others could say anything, Jou disappeared into the store.

"What was that about?" Malik tilted his head, more out of habit. Ryou shrugged in response, and Yugi was left speechless.

Jou had gone into one of those gift shops. They had all sorts of merchandise in there ranging from books to plushies. The three of them wondered what Jou would want to buy there. Their first thoughts were on a present for Seto, but that wasn't his type of store. Jou said he already bought a present for everyone on his list except for the billionaire. Perhaps, he was going to take Yugi's suggestion and make him something.

Suddenly, one of the plushies from the window display was taken. Three brows were raised when they realized what kind of plushie it was. There was no doubt in their mind for whom Jou was buying the present.

Minutes later, Jou emerged with a Blue Eyes White Dragon plushie, a red bow wrapped around its neck.

--------------

Let the chaos commence! Mwuahahahahaha.

1) A large BEWD plushie wearing a red bow.


	3. Unexpected Twists Can Lead To Interestin...

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (3/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: Unexpected Twists Can Lead to Interesting Results

----5 days before Christmas----

Seto woke up to the sounds of Christmas songs blaring on some speaker within his mansion. He glared at his alarm clock as if it was responsible for his predicament. As he was caught in his glaring contest, he didn't notice the door open and someone sneak into his room. Instead he turned to his side so that he could get more sleep.

Unfortunately a certain someone decided it was high time he woke up. Blue eyes cracked open and regarded the intruder with annoyance. He sighed as it wasn't even time for him to be awake. Suddenly, that intruder bounded onto his bed, invading his personal space. "Mokuba, what are you doing up this early, and it's not even Christmas morning."

"You still have to get ready for work, and besides, I need you to drop me off at Yugi's place," Mokuba grinned from ear to ear. Last night he received a phone call from Yugi. The three of them managed to get Jou to confess who he liked. Now it was up to them to help Jou give the perfect gift. Jou had bought a plushie, but he also wanted to make something special for Seto. Mokuba whole heartedly volunteered to help him and Yugi with the present.

Seto meanwhile was raising a brow. First Mokuba practically forced him to agree to a Christmas party. Now he wanted a lift to Yugi's. What was he up to? More to the point, did he even want to know? "Fine, but you'd better be ready by the time I'm leaving." –I'm going soft. - He thought miserably.

"No problem," Mokuba chirped way too enthusiastically for this time in the morning. He bounded off the bed, heading towards the door and then to the kitchen.

Shaking his head, Seto slipped out of bed and headed to the bathroom. Once he was finished with his morning rituals, he re-entered his bedroom to change. This time he decided to go with casual business attire. Besides, he wasn't dressing to impress. After all, this was his company.

When his appearance met his standards, Seto headed down to the kitchen. His staff was scurrying about their business, not minding his presence. He stopped his chauffer and told him the change in plans, but Mokuba had already beaten him to it. His chauffer chuckled as his boss muttered something about sugar and kids not mixing well.

Now that he thought about it, Mokuba had been acting strange for the past few days. First he insisted on having a Christmas party, something he normally wouldn't do. Second, it was clear that he and Yugi were much closer friends than he estimated. Third, the little scamp was up to something, but he couldn't place his finger on it. Most likely it was related to the strange behavior in his younger brother. Fourth, Mokuba was way too cheerful that early in the morning. Given the chance, Mokuba would sleep in until someone hauled him out of bed.

Once he reached the kitchen, Seto found his brother already half-way finished with his stack of pancakes. He frowned upon this. Did he not tell his cooks to make his brother healthy meals? He needed to have a word with them later, and if they were lucky, they may keep their jobs after Christmas.

"What are you planning to do at Yugi's place?" Seto inquired curiously as he took a seat at the table. A plate of eggs, bacon, and toast as well as a cup of black coffee was placed in front of him. He watched his brother take his time to answer the question.

Mokuba knew Seto disapproved of him talking with his mouth full so he had to swallow, giving him a moment to think of an excuse. He couldn't tell Seto that he was going to help Jou make a Christmas present for him. It would be better if he found out during the party. That was it! "We were going to go over the details for the party. It won't take long and I will be back long before you come home."

Seto had his doubts, but he knew Yugi well enough to trust that he wouldn't purposely endanger Mokuba's life. Hell he even risked his soul to save theirs, even though Seto didn't want the help in the first place. "I want you to have your cell phone on at all times and make sure to bring your charger."

"Yes captain," Mokuba declared, giving a mock salute with his fork still in his hand. "Nothing will go wrong." He then promptly dug into the remainder of his breakfast.

-Why do I have this feeling that things will go otherwise?-

-------------------------------------------

Later that day, Seto slumped over in his chair. The last of the bugs had been dealt with. Now they could actually make the release date they had planned. It wasn't too late, especially with those last minute shoppers. Plus, there were plenty of people that exchanged their gifts after Christmas. This meant the discs would have to be made quickly. Good thing, everything else, such as the manuals, boxes, and cases, had been taken care of. It was just a faulty program.

He glanced over at the clock. Was it already three in the afternoon? Seto let out a long sigh. He needed time away from his office. Perhaps, he should grab lunch while he was at it. Not a second later, his stomach voiced its agreement. Was the mutt rubbing off on him? It couldn't be. He chalked it up to seven hours without anything to eat and here he was worrying about Mokuba's eating habits when he should be worried about his own.

-Hm, where do I want to eat? - Seto thought as he donned his usual trench coat. –I don't wish to be mobbed. That rules out my favorite restaurants. Plus, I'm not about to eat at a fast food joint.- He had enough time to think on the way down to his limo.

After making a call to his chauffer, he exited his office to find his personal assistant hard at work. It was more like kissing his ass. He also noted that she was in another one of those outfits. –Quick, someone call the fashion police. - As if he cared about the latest trend. It was too revealing for his liking. Shouldn't she be cold in this type of weather?

"Kaiba-sama," she called his name, causing him to swear softly. "What should I tell your clients?" She quickly picked up a pad of paper and a pen, trying to appear all business.

"I have already talked to them," Seto informed her, not missing a beat. He walked towards the elevator, ignoring her protests. She would definitely have to be replaced. It was only a matter of when he would do it.

Just as he stepped out of the building, a snowflake landed on his nose, followed by another. Soon several frozen particles were floating down from the sky. Seto cursed as the limo door was opened for him. He stepped into the automobile without a word.

"Where to, Kaiba-sama?" Even though he was much older than Seto, he still had to treat his boss with respect. He had known Seto ever since he inherited the company, and unknowingly, he thought of Seto as the son he never had.

"The mall," Seto replied in a distant voice. Something had been bothering him, and he didn't like it, not one bit. Looking out the window he watched the white flakes drift towards the earth as if being pulled by some unknown force. It was kind of like his relationship with the mutt. –Where the hell did that come from?-

He really ought to cut back on his late nights. For a moment there, he actually thought… Who was he kidding? He had been in too deep for a long time, but he denied it as always. Speaking of which, he still needed to buy him a present, and he wasn't referring to his brother.

When they arrived at the mall, Seto was surprised it wasn't busy, but considering it was a weekday, it meant that it will be crowded later in the evening. He stepped out of the limo and made his way into the large building. As soon as he entered, he was pelted by the sounds of carolers. No wonder why Bakura couldn't stand them. They were as annoying as his employees. They would have been more annoying, but he had to deal with them only once a year.

Inside the mall, several Christmas trees were colorfully decorated. He took note of a particular tree with duel monster decorations on it. Whoever that person was, he or she had good taste. The others were decorated with the traditional Christmas decorations. It made him feel sick just looking at them. It was one of the many reasons why he disliked this holiday. He glanced over at a particular store, but had to look away quickly. A bright light was angled to where it blinded him. He would have sued the moron, but it wasn't worth his time and effort. Whoever that person was should be lucky, but alas, she had no idea her shiny Christmas tree could cause so much trouble.

The rest of the mall was decorated with bows, wreaths, garlands, mistletoe, and various other Christmas type decorations. He avoided being under a mistletoe at all cost. Who knew if some perverted fangirl was waiting for a chance to kiss him? He blanched at the thought.

As Seto walked down the mall, he also thought of what to buy Jou. Just great, now he was acting like one of those fools. Was it worth his pride and dignity? He imagined honey colored eyes lighting up as he hugged his present, followed by a special something for Seto. Oh yeah, it was definitely going to be worth it.

Now the problem was finding something Jou would actually want. He knew Jou to be a decent duelist. It was a known fact, but he was definitely not going to mention that, especially in front of him. Another thing he knew was that the blond had a voracious appetite. He could buy him all the food he wanted, but he didn't want two things. First, he didn't want a fat puppy. Second, he wanted it to last more than a day. After all, this would be his first gift to anyone outside his family. He wanted it to be special.

Seto wrinkled his nose when he reached what seemed to be the clothing section of the mall. They had their best outfits on display or what they thought was popular. He thought their clothing was extremely tacky and wouldn't even dare making his pup wear that. It was just cruel and unusual punishment. A particular outfit caught his attention. Normally he could care less, but he remembered he had seen it somewhere. It was something a woman would use to seduce a man. Then it hit him. His personal assistant wore that a couple days ago.

-Should I break the news to her before or after Christmas? - Seto pondered. He didn't care if she was heartbroken during the festive holiday. She should have known better than to play with fire.

A large bookstore had cheesy Christmas songs playing over the speakers, making Seto want to strangle the moron who put on that music. Besides, the only books he had seen Jou read were comic books. He didn't know what series the blond liked and asking his friends was out of the question.

After he walked through the entire mall, Seto was about to give up when he noticed a small store. It wasn't the type that screamed the Christmas spirit. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Instead of the usual red, green, or silver decorations, it had mostly dark colors, particularly black. Their display was rather odd as it held barely anything. It had a few items, but it was hard to tell what their purpose was unless that person knew in the first place. Foxy dreams was an adult store. He was sure of it by the innuendo. It wouldn't hurt to check out the place. So far no one had recognized him, and, he hoped, no one would any time soon.

Upon entering the store, he found his suspicions to be true. There was an entire wall dedicated to magazines, books, pictures, and various articles that had images of either nude men or women. One aisle had different kinds of lube and a few book on positions. Another aisle held items for bondage. He raised his brow upon seeing that, mentally noting to take a closer look some time in the future. In a third aisle, there were different kinds of sexual play toys. Seto would definitely have to look there one of these days. The fourth one was the same as the third. The fifth one held condoms and other protective devices. In the back, there were racks of very risqué outfits. Suddenly he felt the warmth go to his groin as he imagined his pup in one of those.

A familiar person made his way to the counter. He placed a set of hand cuffs, a couple of sex toys, and a giant tube of lube on the counter. "Do you handle gift wrapping?"

"Sure we do," the white haired young man spoke. He was too cheerful for Seto's liking. "If you make a purchase of twenty dollars or more, it's free."

"Great," the Egyptian smiled. He watched as his items were being rung. –Maybe I can pick up something for Bakura while I'm here. He definitely could use a release, and Ryou's innocence isn't helping either. - He turned to look at the play toys.

Seto practically dove into the lube section. He certainly wasn't expecting Malik to be here out of all places. Watching the blond carefully, he made sure his presence went unnoticed by the two. He had to basically bend over due to his height. When the Egyptian found something, he had to quickly move over as to remain unnoticed.

In his effort to get away, Seto knocked over a large bottle. His quick reflexes saved him from being caught. He was about to place it back on the shelf when he noticed it was a bottle of chocolate flavored lube. Now if he knew his pup, Jou loved anything with chocolate. He even tried chocolate covered ants at one time. How disgusting.

Glancing towards the register, he noticed Malik waiting for his other gift to be wrapped. Just how long was he in his thoughts? As long as Malik didn't see him, everything would be fine. After what seemed to be hours, the Egyptian finally left with his packages in hand.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" The all too friendly sales person inquired. How did he get there?

It took all of Seto's will power to remain calm and to not strangle him for sneaking up on him. No one, except Mokuba, had ever caught him off guard. "I'm looking for a present." Gods, he hated asking for help.

"Who is this present for?" The white haired worker inquired with amusement. –He reminds me of my brother. I wonder where his buttons are. Hm, better not since he is a paying customer.-

"…….. It's none of your damn business," Seto stammered, blushing a bright red. How dare this nobody ask him a personal question!

The worker's smile became wider. "This must be for a special someone then." He sauntered over to where the clothing was located. Noting the blush deepen, he knew he hit the nail on the head and hard too. "The reason why I asked is because you wouldn't want to give just anything to your special someone." He deliberately paused and tapped his chin with one of his fingers. "It has to be something special and meant only for him."

"How do you know?" Seto spluttered, his grip tightening on the bottle. It was a miracle the thing didn't explode under pressure.

"For starters, you have a giant bottle of lube," he answered, to which Seto looked down at his hand. "Second, you were busy checking out one of my customers."

Seto scowled when he heard this. He wasn't checking out Malik. It was more like hiding from him, because the Egyptian would never let it down. Plus, he didn't want the others to find out he had been in one of these shops.

"I would suggest one of these lovely outfits," the worker smirked as he showed three different outfits. "Or maybe one of these others is more to your liking."

"I'll take that one."


	4. Innocent Lil' Angels I Don't Think So!

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (4/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: Innocent Lil' Angels. I Don't Think So!

----4 days before Christmas----

"Do you think we have a large enough tree?" Yugi inquired, recalling how large the tree was. It looked like it was at least double their heights if not then three times. Too bad, they didn't bring anything to measure it.

Mokuba giggled. "You can never have a too tall Christmas tree. Besides, we have more room to put our presents under it." His eyes shined with mischief. "There's even space for a certain present."

Yugi mirrored that cheeky smile. "Definitely. Now all we have to do is get it under the tree." It was going to be hard, considering the present was large and heavy. They could ask Honda and Malik to help. Yugi was certain the Egyptian would aid them, but he wasn't sure about Honda. Knowing Bakura and Marik, they most likely would volunteer, since it was embarrassing for the recipient.

"I'm sure someone will help us," Mokuba stated with confidence. He scooted closer to Yugi so he could see the list they had created the day before. When Mokuba said that he was going over to Yugi's to plan the party, he wasn't lying. He did plan the party, but it was after helping Jou with his present for Seto. "They may even help us acquire it."

Yugi's smile turned into a smirk at the thought of 'acquiring' the present. "Well, I hope they aren't too rough with the present. I'm sure he wouldn't want to receive it in a bad condition."

The younger Kaiba nodded his head. "He likes his presents new and pristine, though I doubt he would want to return this." He nodded his head again. "It's a good thing too, because we don't have a receipt anyways."

Looking up from the list, Yugi added, "Speaking of which, shouldn't we wrap it? Half the fun is unwrapping it." He loved using innuendo, because no one would suspect he had those thoughts.

"I don't think he's ready to go that far," Mokuba giggled, thinking about how his brother would react to opening his present. "But just in case, we may want to provide a couple supplemental gifts." Suddenly the two of them started to laugh hard, understanding the implied meaning.

Up in front, the chauffer began to wonder if either of his passengers consumed a large quantity of sugary products. He had experienced a sugar high Mokuba on several occasions, especially when Seto took him out for ice cream. Now he had to deal with two of them. –What did I do to ever deserve this kind of punishment?- He miserably thought; though he kept his eyes on the road.

When they managed to calm down, Yugi was the first to find his voice. "What flavor does your brother like? After all, it could make the present good or bad."

Scrunching his nose, Mokuba thought of what his brother liked. "He's fond of strawberries. He doesn't care much for chocolate though. I think he will be once we're through with him though."

"So strawberries it is," Yugi voiced in agreement. He wondered if they should get the other thing, but he didn't know what size to get. "You wouldn't happen to know what size your brother is."

The black haired boy merely raised a brow. "What do you think?"

"Maybe he wasn't blessed in that area?" Yugi replied as casually as if he was talking about the weather and not something so naughty. Soon enough, the two were howling with laughter, causing the chauffer to groan yet again.

"That's a good one," Mokuba gasped. His cheeks were slightly red from laughing so hard. The two of them scrambled back onto their seats for they had fallen off due to the prior bout of laughing. "Next on the list is a camcorder and a digital camera. There's no way I'm going to miss an opportunity like this. Who knows when I'll get another chance?"

"There's always next year," Yugi reminded him. He had already crossed off the tree from their list. They still needed to buy the decorations and other party supplies. "And the year after that."

"It wouldn't be the same," Mokuba slightly pouted. His brother might have hooked up with him by then, and he knew his big brother to be on the cautious side. In other words, he thought of all the pros and cons before making a decision, especially a life changing one.

"I guess so," Yugi said before remembering something. "Why did you buy that pear tree and the partridge?"

"Decoration," Mokuba replied. He knew his brother wouldn't approve of having several animals in the mansion. One time he tried to talk Seto into letting him keep a puppy he rescued. Of course, Seto said no to it and told him its owners may be looking for it. As it turned out, the puppy was a stray. Fortunately, Mokuba had been able to find a good home for it. Plus Seto allowed the pup to stay on two conditions. Mokuba had to take responsibility of it and find someone to adopt it.

"Let me guess, you were inspired by a song?" Yugi inquired. It was the only thing he could think of. Also the song happened to be playing over a nearby store's loud speaker.

"Yup," Mokuba replied all too cheerfully. He had that innocent look on his face. "I wanted to do something unique for the party, and it was a spur of the moment type of thing. What are you going to wear?"

"I was thinking about dressing up," Yugi said thoughtfully. An evil smirk, which should have been on Bakura or Marik's face but not Yugi's, made an appearance on Yugi's face. "Maybe we can get Marik, Bakura, and Yami to dress up as well."

"Do tell."

And let the plotting begin!

--------------

For the next five hours, Mokuba and Yugi bought almost an entire store's worth in decorations. Okay, it wasn't that much, but poor Robert, the chauffer. He had to make several trips back to the limo and even drive it back to the mansion a few times since the limo was so full. They decided not to go with the traditional ornaments since Seto didn't like cute. Most of them were duel monsters or characters from various anime.

Since they didn't really celebrate Christmas, they had no decoration. It meant they had to buy more, which neither of the boys complained about. They actually had fun shopping. The workers were really nice, but then again, they did buy a lot. They decided to decorate the tree the next day, since they were tired from all the shopping. Plus Malik, Ryou, and Honda wanted to help. Jou would have, but he needed to work. It wasn't easy earning the only income of a family, especially if one doesn't have a high school degree.

Next came the party items. They received a few stares since they were supposed to be innocent, but they didn't care. Due to their age, they had Robert pay for it and go buy the special gift for Seto. When the chauffer came out of Foxy Dreams, he was very pale. Mokuba decided to pay him a bonus for putting up with their scheme.

Mokuba had instructed where the trees, the partridge, and the decoration would be kept. It took the entire staff about half an hour to move everything. This caused Seto to investigate where his staff ran off. Surprisingly, he was home earlier than usual for some reason or another.

"Did you have fun?" Seto inquired as he looked over the huge pile of decorations. It was a good thing the secret present and supplies had been moved to the younger Kaiba's room.

"Yup, we certainly did," Mokuba chirped, bouncing towards his brother to give him a hug. He then bounded back to where the camcorder box was located.

"We?" Seto inquired. He wondered if Robert still had enough energy to keep up with his younger brother. To him, the chauffer was old, but he was definitely reliable.

Mokuba nodded his head as he was opening the box. "Yugi and I went shopping. If you're wondering why he went, he did help me plan the party after all. You do remember?"

"Yes I remember," Seto held back a scowl, but raised a brow upon seeing a pear tree with a more than irate partridge in it. "Why is there a partridge in a pear tree here?"

-I need a new agent.- The more than irate partridge thought gloomily from his nice cage.

Glancing up Mokuba calmly replied, "It's part of the decorations. Yes, I decided to go all out, because this will be my first Christmas party."

-That makes sense.- Seto mused. Besides, Kaibas were known for going all out and pulling all the stops. His brother was no exception. "You're responsible for the bird."

"No problem," Mokuba chirped, now flipping through the pages of the manual.

-I'm doomed!- The partridge sulked.

--------------

The first twenty minutes Mokuba spent learning which buttons did what. He then followed their staff, recording them doing their everyday activities. He also experimented with the different settings, but soon enough he became bored so he set off to find a better subject.

Mokuba filmed the partridge while making comments. Unfortunately, the said bird didn't do much or respond to any of his comments. In fact, he sat there preening his feathers and ignoring the camera. At least, it appeared to be ignoring Mokuba. However, it had other things on its mind.

-Do you have anything better to do than to watch me take a bath? - Of course, Mokuba didn't hear this let alone understand a single chirp.

This too became boring. Sighing Mokuba was about to put away his new camcorder when he thought of the perfect subject, his older brother. They hardly had anything from when they were younger so this would be a good time to catch up on that. He betted all the others had pictures of when they were younger, though some may inflict huge amounts of humiliation.

After checking how much tape was left, Mokuba bounded towards his brother's office. At this time of day, he was most likely there unless he was on a bathroom break. Then he would naturally be in the bathroom. Even in his sleep, he knew where to find his brother's office.

Upon reaching the door, Mokuba banged as loud and hard as he could. Sometimes, his brother became so caught up in his work that he forgot about everything else. He repeated this three more times when no one answered the door. Frowning he turned the knob and entered without announcing it. He did give four rather loud warnings.

"Niichan?' Mokuba called out. He noticed the lights were turned off and the computer wasn't running. It meant Seto wasn't going to be here any time soon.

Mokuba shut the door behind him and went off to find his brother. The next option was his bedroom so off he went. He raced through the hallway, nearly bumping into a couple of maids. With all the excitement, he somehow managed to find the energy to be hyper.

Stopping in front of his brother's bedroom door, Mokuba heard the strangest thing. He thought he heard his brother singing or perhaps it was his imagination. The door wasn't locked when he opened it.

Inside the room, Seto was nowhere to be found. His bed had been neatly done and everything seemed to be in order. Everything was organized even down to his socks.

A minute later, a voice was belting out Christmas carols. That voice was unmistakable. It was his brother singing along to the radio. Since when did Seto sing? More to the point, when did he get into the Christmas spirit? Fortunately for him, Seto forgot to lock the door.

Sneaking into the bathroom, Mokuba turned on the camcorder and started recording. He caught the last half of Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer. Soon enough, The Twelve Days of Christmas followed it, except he replaced the partridge in a pear tree with a puppy in my bed. This caused Mokuba to giggle, but he slapped his free hand over his mouth, muffling the noise.

By this time, Mokuba was thankful for the curtain that blocked his view of Seto, because it blocked his brother's view of him as well. Even though they were close, they weren't that close. They were some things he didn't want to know about his brother, but a certain blond might.

The third carol was I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus. This time, he didn't change the lyrics. He was somewhat off key, but it was much better than Honda. That brunette was completely tone deaf. Every time he sang, dog howls accompanied it. Okay, so it wasn't every time, but it was enough times for dense people to pick up on it. Mokuba recalled Seto asking why Jou hadn't joined. The blond answered something about not knowing the lyrics. Then his brother said that Jou did not need to know the lyrics, because it was only howling. Needless to say, Jou was restrained by an annoyed Honda and an amused Malik.

Once the song was over, the water ceased and a hand reached out to grab a towel. Mokuba took this as his cue to make a hasty retreat. He didn't want Seto to find the tape and destroy it before he could make copies. Yugi would definitely want to watch this and on the big screen with surround sound too.

This was going to be a fun Christmas.

--------------

My fingers are numb, and I'm only halfway finished. Gah!

Mokie and Yugi are such naughty boys. XP


	5. Obsessions Can Be Deadly

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (5/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: Obsessions Can Be Deadly

----3 days before Christmas----

When Robert picked up Mokuba's guests, he thought he was hallucinating or in some sort of bizarre dream with no escape. There were two Yugi Moutos. The taller of the two was hesitant on going until he heard about the size of the Christmas tree. There was no way he was going to let Yugi go there without his protection. After all, something bad can happen like the tree falling on his precious hikari. Needless to say, Yami was in the limo before Robert could even blink let alone open the door.

Next was Ryou. Once again, Robert was starting to doubt his sanity. There were two of them. It was easy to tell them apart since one was innocent in appearance and the other was far from it. Bakura had better things to do than to decorate some tree. He planned on reeking havoc with Marik and refused to go until the pharaoh had shown his face when he became impatient. If the pharaoh was going, then so was Bakura with one of those disposable cameras. Yes, Ryou taught him how to use it, and the tomb robber planned on capturing the pharaoh's every embarrassing moment.

The third house they visited was Honda's. With the way things had been going, he wouldn't be surprised if Honda had a 'twin.' Surprisingly, there was only one of him. The chauffer was immensely relieved. When they planned the decorating party, Honda was sure the dark spirits didn't want to attend, but he valued his life and his existence in this realm so he didn't ask.

The last house was Malik's. When Robert knocked on the door, he was greeted by a pissed off Marik with an erection. The chauffer debated on whether to run away or faint when the dark spirit glared at him. Fortunately, Malik made an appearance and politely asked the others to wait. Twelve minutes later, the Egyptian emerged with a smirking and fully clothed Marik.

Since there were a lot of decorations, they split into teams of two. Yugi and Mokuba hung the ornaments on the lower half of the Christmas tree while Honda and Marik did the upper half. Oddly enough, Marik seemed to be in a good mood and didn't mind helping out with the decorations. No one wanted to ask him why either. Yami and Malik placed the decorations on one side of the room. Ryou and Bakura took the other. They were paired, because the latter had to be on good behavior if he wanted something special from the former, even though the former had no clue what the latter really wanted.

They borrowed a few of the serving carts from the servants so they didn't have to haul all of those decorations around the room. The servants didn't mind as long as the carts were returned in good condition. They were definitely not looking forward to explaining why yet another serving cart was destroyed. It wasn't their fault Seto's last guest had a very short temper and had trained as a kick boxer in his youth.

A few hours later Anzu arrived. She had dance rehearsal in the morning, but she was free the entire afternoon. When she saw the groups, she immediately joined Yami's group, much to his and Malik's annoyance. As hard as she tried, she could never get close enough to her crush. He always seemed to be on the move or standing next to Malik as if he was using the Egyptian as a human shield. No matter what, she wasn't going to let that dampen her spirit. She believed the pharaoh to be severely shy. Occasionally, Honda would glance at her before sighing. As much as he hated to admit to himself, he never stood a chance against Yami.

By the time the late afternoon rolled around, the gang managed to decorate the entire room and actually made it look nice. Mokuba told them he would have their servants clean up the mess they created. After all, they were being paid. He suggested they have hot chocolate or coffee while they waited for Robert to return from picking up Seto.

"What is that thing?" Marik asked, pointing to the large plushie in his hikari's arms. He glared at the offending item. He hated it, because it was receiving more attention from his hikari than he was. He should be the one Malik was cuddling against, not some stupid whatever it was called. -Damn that thing! I swear I'll rip it to shreds and feed it to those annoying carolers.-

Malik returned the glare, protectively holding onto the plushie. "You'll hurt Rei-chan's feelings. She's a reindeer, not a thing you numbskull." He then lovingly hugged the plushie, to Marik's intense annoyance and displeasure. "And I heard that."

Marik scowled. That thought wasn't meant to be sent. "Whatever." Why did his hikari have to have these obsessions? First it was falcons, then it was bunnies (Bakura's fault), then foxes, and now reindeers. He eyed Malik's festive sweater with the chibi reindeer prints on them. One of these days, he was going to burn the damn thing.

"You're not going to burn my sweater," Malik growled while placing Rei-can on the serving cart behind him. He crossed his arms to make a point. "I happen to like this sweater, and if you burn it, you can forget about getting anything from me until next Christmas."

Marik's jaw literally hit the floor before he regained his composure. "You wouldn't dare!" His hikari wouldn't do that, would he? Sure, he was insane, but he had yet to deny Marik his special treat.

"Oh yes I would!" Malik countered, his anger rapidly rising. Being ever so alert, Yugi and Ryou took note of it and dashed to the nearest safe place, namely behind Yami. "You know I'm not addicted to it as you are. If you think about getting it from somewhere else, I won't give you any of it until I feel like it. It will definitely not be any time soon."

"Damn obsession," Marik angrily pouted. Maybe if he made that shirt disappear or if it was accidentally destroyed, then he may get something and be rid of that thing as well. It was worth a shot until someone overheard his thoughts again. Maybe he should take lessons from the other dark spirits on blocking his thoughts.

Poking his yami in the chest, Malik stated with great irritation, "I heard that to. So if anything happens, I'll know it's your fault!"

For some odd reason, this little squabble was turning on Marik. Being the horny spirit he was, he pounced on his unsuspecting hikari, causing the serving cart with Rei-chan the reindeer to go careening across the room.

Unfortunately for a certain dark spirit, he had his back to the out of control serving cart and was promptly bowled over by it. Slightly dazed, Bakura jumped to his feet, glaring at the plushie. The serving cart's wild run had come to a stop when it crashed into the wall. "That moose is dinner!" He started running over to where the helpless 'moose' was lying.

"I'll save you Rei-chan!" Malik exclaimed before pushing off his horny darker half and racing over to the 'moose' while running over Bakura in the process. He quickly snatched the plushie and held it protectively.

"What the hell was that for?!" Bakura angrily shouted once he peeled himself off the floor. He was giving both the Egyptian and the 'moose' a death glare.

"First of all, Rei-chan is a reindeer, you idiot," Malik angrily corrected him. There was no way he was going to let that tomb robber lay a finger on his precious Rei-chan. "Second, I'll make you go screw a cactus if you ever lay a finger on her." The other males flinched at the thought of it.

Marik found this to be quite amusing and was laughing like a madman. Wait! He was one, never mind. Ryou and Yugi were trying to stifle their giggles and failing miserably. Yami, on the other hand, was laughing but not to the same degree as Marik. Honda wisely stepped out of the room to check on Mokuba.

Out of nowhere, Marik began to sing "Bakura got run over by a reindeer" off key and rather loudly too. He failed to notice no one else joining in his carol but continued nevertheless. However, he did notice one furious tomb robber charging at him at full speed. Now he was a psycho, but he sure certainly was no idiot.

Soon enough, Marik was being chased all over the mansion, nearly running over the staff in the process. Their chase went outside the mansion, up to the second floor, and even on the rooftop.

"What's going on around here?" Mokuba inquired as he exited his mansion where the others had gathered. One of the staff informed him of the two spirits creating havoc throughout the mansion, both inside and out. In fact, the younger Kaiba had nearly been steam rolled twice if it weren't for the loud threats that warned him of their impending arrival.

"Would you like the edited version or the long version?" Malik inquired, still holding onto Rei-chan. He didn't trust the tomb robber around her.

"Okay," Mokuba said nervously. He glanced up to where the tomb robber was chasing the other dark spirit. "Just great, Seto won't let me have the part if he sees those two on the roof. Would someone please get those two down before my big brother sees them?"

Yugi looked hopefully at his yami. He agreed with Mokuba on the point about the party. As stated before, Yugi practically reinvented the art of innocence, not that it would take much to convince his boyfriend.

The former pharaoh sighed. His hikari was too cute for his own good. He made his way to where a ladder had been propped against the lowest point of the roof. Once up the ladder, he wasted no time going over to the two spirits who were currently running in circles. Actually, Marik was using a chimney as a shield.

"I'm busy pharaoh!" Bakura snapped at Yami while trying to grab, no punch, Marik. He ended up hitting the chimney instead and cursed extremely loudly. It was a miracle the entire block didn't hear it, but the entire staff did. Most of it was in Egyptian so it didn't matter.

Yami groaned but smirked an evil one, making the other two dark spirits question his sanity. "If you don't stop chasing Marik, I'll tell everyone and I mean everyone, you have a fetish for pink silk boxers."

"You wouldn't!" Bakura exclaimed in disbelief. He thought only Ryou knew about his dirty little secret. How did the pharaoh know? And more importantly who else knew?

Upon hearing this, Marik busted up in a bout of laughter. "You… and… pink silk boxers….. What a riot!!!" Somehow he managed to get enough oxygen to his brain.

The former tomb robber looked like he was going to murder Marik. However a look from the pharaoh warned him otherwise. That dark spirit was going to pay for laughing at him. He couldn't wait until the opportunity for revenge to present itself, for it would happen to be in the very near future.

"As for you Marik, I suggest you stop annoying Bakura or I'll tell everyone you had a huge crush on Brittney Spears," Yami said with a warning tone. He meant business.

This time it was Bakura's turn to laugh and laugh he did. "I can't believe you thought she was hot!"

"Shut up!"

Minutes later, all three spirits were making their way down the ladder. Yami went last to ensure neither of them pulled any stunts. They reached the bottom just as Seto's limo turned onto the street. The servants were quick to store the ladder, and Seto didn't know any better.

---------------------------

After dinner, Mokuba was bored so he decided to search for his presents. Knowing his brother, Seto most likely would hide them in a safe place. The possible rooms included his bedroom, his home office, his computer room, and his personal lab. Now if he planned this right, he wouldn't be caught in the act.

Mokuba had last seen Seto in his office. More than likely, Seto would stay there for awhile, leaving enough time for him to search the bedroom. Once finished there, he'd search the computer room and then the lab. When he was sure his brother was in his bedroom, he'd check the office last. All in all, it sounded like a good plan, but no plan was fail proof.

Just as he thought, Seto was in his office working on something or another. Mokuba didn't know nor wanted to find out either. He was a kid on a mission. Besides he didn't want to be giving Seto any ideas. Bounding down the hallway and up the stairs, he quickly reached his big brother's room in no time.

"If I were Seto, where would I hide it?" Mokuba asked himself.

Mokuba started with under the bed. He pulled those hanging sheets and found darkness. Sighing he searched for a flashlight and found it in one of the drawers in the night stand besides the bed. He went back down and searched under the bed. All he found were oversized dust bunnies. Seto needed to get that area cleaned one of these days.

He then searched the night stand, but yielded disappointing results. Seto kept a few books, note pads, pens, a flashlight which he was still holding onto, a book lamp, and a few miscellaneous items. There were no presents here.

The next thing to be searched was the dresser. Mokuba pulled out the drawers and rifled though them, even if they contained personal items. He knew Seto kept his belongings neatly organized so he made sure not to leave anything out of place. Half the time he spent arranging the clothes back to their original form and position. In the end, all he found was a lot of lint and loose threads. The book stand offered very little hiding places and the other items in the room were in similar conditions.

The last place was the walk in closet. He opened the door and began looking through the clothes. Just as he was about to search within a small box, about the size of a shoe box, his brother entered the room. Quickly, Mokuba hid in the back of Seto's closet, making himself as scarce as possible. He thought he had more time, but his watch showed him he took longer than he thought he did.

The door to the closet suddenly opened, and Seto entered. He glanced around his closet, wondering what he should wear to bed. Fingering his silk nightwear, he wondered what his pup was doing. He wouldn't be surprised if the blond was still eating. Snapping out of his reverie, he moved closer to the back.

Mokuba had to move or be discovered. His fingers brushed against a large box. He would have let out a cry of joy, but he knew better. His brother was still there, and he didn't want to be caught. The rustle of clothes alerted him to where Seto was standing. As long as he didn't see Seto, it meant his brother couldn't see him either.

Minutes after the sound stopped, Mokuba took a chance and poked his head out from his hiding place. His brother wasn't in the closet or his room since there was no light coming through the door. Using the flashlight, he moved the box towards the center of the room. With the small space, it was no easy task for him, but somehow he managed. He carefully removed the lid and nearly fainted upon seeing the contents of it.

Inside the box, there were several items: a giant bottle of chocolate flavored lube, a bottle of raspberry scented lotion, a couple of well used notebooks, a drawing book, and last but not least a leather outfit. Mokuba wondered when his brother became suddenly interested in chocolate unless he was going to give to a certain someone. He wasn't as innocent as he looked for he knew the actual use of the lube. One of his brother's employees told him. No, that person didn't work at Kaiba Corp but at the mansion. Mokuba also knew what the lotion was used for, and it wasn't dry skin. This made him wonder how many times Seto masturbated since he was usually so uptight all the time.

The younger Kaiba picked up a random notebook and began reading a random page. Moments later, he snapped the notebook shut. It was his brother's fantasies in detail. He never thought his brother had these urges, let alone a perverted bone in his body. Malik once stated that hell would freeze over before Seto had any sexual fantasies. Hell had already been frozen over several times.

Then there were the photos. They had one thing in common, the subject. Each picture had Jou or most of him in it. Some were taken at strange angles and some from far away. In each of them, Jou appeared to be in a natural pose, meaning the picture had been taken without his knowledge.

Lastly, there was the drawing book. He opened it to the first page and suddenly forgot to breathe. There for his 'innocent' eyes to see was a realistic picture of Jou in his birthday suit. He flipped the pages and found the other pictures were of Jou in interesting poses. All of them were rated NC-17 material.

Placing everything back, Mokuba pushed the box back to its original place and then scrambled to get out of there. His brother would kill him if he ever knew he had seen any of that stuff. Okay so he wouldn't kill Mokuba, but he would probably cancel the party and wouldn't allow him to have any sweets as a punishment. Once the coast was clear, he dashed out of his brother's room faster than Jou running to an all you can eat buffet. He decided to raid the kitchen for something to drink.

On his way down, he found his brother sucking on an oversized candy cane. Dirty thoughts filled his head, especially after reading that page from Seto's notebook. "Wouldn't you rather like to suck on something else? Something that is warm and not as hard as that candy cane."

Seto nearly chocked when he heard those words coming from his brother's 'innocent' mouth. Did Mokuba understand what he was implying? That impish smile told him the answer without having to ask the question. "When did you learn that?"

"Learn what?" Mokuba asked, feigning innocence. He was glad he had an excellent teacher, namely Yugi.

"I'm not going to repeat myself," Seto warned. He had taken the candy cane out of his mouth by now. His tongue however already started to turn blue from the food coloring in the sugary treat. A noise caught his attention, giving Mokuba enough time to escape.

When he saw his brother preoccupied with something else, Mokuba took it as his cue to make a hasty retreat. As he danced out of the room, he cheekily sang, "I saw Seto kissing Jouno Claus. Standing by the fire on Christmas eve…" The entire staff and a few people passing by were treated to this song for Mokuba sang it as he danced throughout the entire mansion.

Seto fell over when he heard the first line. Standing up, he quickly gave chase. Unfortunately, his brother seemed to have all the luck on his side. By the time he almost caught Mokuba, he was too exhausted and went straight to bed. Good thing he already changed.

He would deal with Mokuba in the morning.

----------------------------------------

Man, this was a hard chapter to start. My muses were too picky so I had to start over at least three times before they found something they liked. , Damn muses.

XP Things are certainly starting to become interesting, ne? Mokie has such a dirty mind. Wonder where he gets it from? Hm......


	6. Wishful Thinking Can be Fun

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (6/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, Mai, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: Wishful Thinking Can be Fun

-2 days before Christmas-

Christmas was her favorite time of the year. It was a time of being with friends and family. Hopefully, her true love returned those feelings. She never knew, because she was too shy to admit it, and believed he was too, after what happened yesterday. This year everything was going to change. She wasn't going to be waiting for opportunity to come knocking on her door. Instead, she was literally going to go barging in like the lovesick woman she was.

After searching through her entire wardrobe, Anzu couldn't find the perfect outfit to wear. She wanted to wear something special for that special person in her life, namely Yami. If her schedule wasn't so hectic, she would have picked it out by now. Ever since the Christmas play, much of her free time was taken up by school, rehearsals, or her part time job.

Yesterday, she managed to get the afternoon off and headed to the Kaiba mansion for the decorating get together. She heard about it from Honda the day before and wanted to spend time with Yami. However, there were more people than she anticipated. At least she spent time with the pharaoh, even if he was too shy around her.

This afternoon, she planned on hitting the mall to find a sexy outfit to wear to the party. It also meant dealing with the mob of last minute shoppers. Still it was going to be worth it when she received her first kiss. She giggled at the thought of her fist kiss. It was going to be something she would never forget. Of course, she'd have a picture taken of the moment.

Since she didn't have a driver's license, Anzu took the local bus. There was no way she was going to walk in the knee deep snow. It would take forever to reach the mall. Plus, she was certain her toes would become frozen. Besides, it was too cold for her liking.

When she arrived at the mall, Anzu found it literally packed with many shoppers. She had to push and shove her way though, being careful not to run over any small children in the process. Normally she was a polite girl, but she needed that outfit and wasn't going to let anyone stand in her way. A few people shot her nasty looks. She didn't pay any attention to them.

The game store seemed to be packed tight with several shoppers. She figured a new game had been recently released, and she wasn't far from the truth either. A nearby poster caught her attention. A new duel monster game had been released by Kaiba Corp. She wished she could have bought the game for him, but no doubt it was going to be more than she could afford. If her mother didn't help her, there was no way she can afford to buy a sexy outfit, though her mother didn't really need to know that.

Avoiding all game stores, she made her way to where most of the fashion shops were located. She took her time looking at the displays in the window and inside the actual shop. It wasn't her wedding, but she was making a huge fuss about her clothing. Who can blame her? He was very handsome and a good catch.

Anzu found these outfits to be too plain or too common for her taste. She wanted to wear something more on the exotic side. After all, Yami was as exotic as they get. Besides, she doubted he would notice her if she wore something ordinary. No, she had to be different.

After looking through the last store in the fashion area, Anzu decided to take a break and stopped by the coffee shop. It was packed with many unhappy Christmas shoppers, but that didn't deter her. She managed to make her way to the end of the line without any major incidents. The line moved rather slowly due to the large number of orders.

When she reached the counter, Anzu saw the last person she expected to find. "Mai, what are you doing her?" She gasped, completely forgetting she was to make her order quickly. The line behind her was growing long and impatient by the minute.

"Anzu?" Mai managed to choke out. She never thought one of her friends would ever set foot within this coffee shop. Looked like she was dead wrong. Her violet eyes scanned for Yugi and company. They usually were found together for some odd reason that she had yet to discover. She exhaled with relief when she found none.

"What's holding up the line?" an irate customer yelled. She had been waiting for seven minutes, and her shoes were killing her. Many people voiced their agreement; some even added a few colorful words.

Snapping out of her stupor, the dancer made her order. She paid for the coffee and waited nearby for her order to be filled. As she waited, she thought of all the possible reasons for Mai to be working at the coffee shop.

"Hey boss, I'm going for my break," Mai called out to her manager. She hated this job, but she needed extra cash. Maybe her special someone would notice her this year, and they would share their first kiss underneath the mistletoe.

"You have ten minutes," the manager returned. If it weren't for these damn laws, there was no way he would let them go on their breaks, especially during times like these. Time equaled profits or a lack of it. He hoped for the former.

Mai didn't bother removing her apron, seeing as she was only given a short break. She managed to track down Anzu in the crowd and headed over to her. There were several questions in her mind, but some of them could wait.

"Why are you working here?" Anzu inquired as the blonde walked up to her. She knew Mai was a good duelist and earned her money from the tournaments she entered. Also, it appeared she had a fan club.

Her cheeks sported a faint blush. "Well, I needed the extra cash to buy a present, and there haven't been any tournaments so I had to get the job, Mai answered, partially ashamed for even working there. She had a good reason for it in her opinion. "The pay is lousy, but it's at least something."

"I know what you mean," Anzu sighed, remembering her part time job as a waitress. She really wanted to take dancing lessons, but her parents couldn't afford it at that time. "Many places are overpriced. It's highway robbery!"

"You said it," Mai agreed with her completely. Speaking of which, she didn't even know why the brunette was there. "Doing last minute Christmas shopping?"

Now it was Anzu's turn to blush. Hers however was darker and more noticeable. "I was looking for the perfect outfit to wear to the Christmas party." She didn't need to say the reason why she wanted to look nice.

"What Christmas party, and why wasn't I invited?" Mai inquired. She was known for being a social butterfly. Besides, parties meant free food. It wasn't like she was on a diet either. She mentally took note of the blush staining the dancer's cheeks.

"It's Mokuba's party," Anzu answered truthfully. She had no idea why Mai wasn't invited. Also she didn't want to lie either. It would be wrong of her, and she wasn't about to jeopardize their friendship. "He and Yugi planned it so I don't have any ideas."

"I see," Mai said thoughtfully. Well, if she wasn't invited, it was no big deal. It was most likely going to be a kiddie Christmas party. She didn't even know what she was going to wear for her special someone if she did actually go.

"Maybe I can ask Mokuba or Yugi to invite you," Anzu suggested. She didn't like seeing any of her friends sad. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind."

Mai bit her lip to prevent herself from asking who her special someone was interested in. It was obvious she had some competition, but that didn't mean she was going to give up without a fight. However, she wasn't going to risk telling her secret, because she didn't know how her special person felt about her. "Thanks. You wouldn't happen to be going with your special someone?"

Anzu's blush returned with a vengeance. She stammered a yes and found her hands to be very interesting at the moment. "I want to wear something nice so he would finally notice me."

"If he only cares about looks, then he's not worth it. Trust me."

-

That line kept going through Anzu's head. Of course, it would be worth her efforts. It wasn't like he was dating anyone or so she thought. They get along fairly well, but she wanted to take it up to the next level. In any case, there was no use dwelling on it. She had an outfit to find.

Sometime later, Anzu managed to find her way to Foxy Dreams. She was, at first, hesitant to enter the shop, but she changed her mind when she thought of how Yami would react upon seeing in one of their outfits. Gathering enough courage, she stepped forth into the store. It wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. There were no old and disgusting perverts or any perverts in general. The store was well organized and surprisingly clean.

A young white haired man sat behind the counter, bored out of his mind. Most of their customers arrived in the late afternoon to late evening. At this time, they were lucky to have a few customers. He glanced up when he heard the bell jingle.

The girl was shy and nervous. Obviously, this was her first time inside this type of establishment. From the way she dressed, she seemed to be the type of girl who focused on her studies. She dressed rather conservatively compared to most of his customers. To him, she seemed to be a fish out of water. If he'd had any other customers there, they would be eyeing her like fresh meat.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" The young man politely inquired, startling the already nervous girl. Inwardly, he chuckled at her reaction. She was like a bunny in a fox's den.

Anzu swore she nearly had a heart attack. She almost knocked over a stand of female condoms in the process. Looking to the source of the voice, she was sure there was no one there when she entered. Maybe her mind was playing tricks or perhaps, she was too worried. In either case, he seemed friendly enough.

"I'm looking for something to wear to a Christmas party," she replied hastily. She didn't have to tell for whom she was dressing up. It was none of his business.

A white brow was raised. "Let me guess, you want to impress someone?" He figured a conservative looking girl wouldn't wander into his store unless she had someone special in her life or someone worth changing her looks for.

A bright blush was his answer. "Yes," Anzu managed to squeak. –How did he know? Was he reading my mind- After what she had been through, she wouldn't be surprised if her grandmother returned from the dead.

Upon seeing her confused face, he chuckled. "No, I'm not reading your mind, and I can't see into the future either." His chuckle turned to a soft laugh when she perfectly imitated a goldfish. "I get that all the time. Most people don't know I'm a very observant person."

"Oh," the dancer said as if she was in a trance. "I want him to notice me." She said, her blush returning. Brushing a stray lock of her hair away from her face, she glanced around as if she was afraid of being caught there.

The young man stepped out from behind the counter and moved towards the clothing section of his store. "As you can see we carry a wide selection of outfits. I'm sure you'll find something to snag your guy."

By now, Anzu's blush would put a tomato to shame. With some help, she found something to wear to the party. She wanted the naughty Mrs. Claus suit, but they didn't have any in her size. They did have an elf suit; however, it didn't look good on her. She settled for a reindeer outfit, complete with fake antlers and a tail.

As she was heading to the counter, the dancer spotted something unusually pink. She wondered what it could be since most of the items there weren't brightly colored. Well, there were a few things, but they weren't colored pink. When she approached the bondage aisle, she noticed they were pink furred handcuffs. They looked rather cute, and a smile crept over her face as she thought of the many possibilities. She picked up a pair of them and headed over to the counter, where the young man was waiting with her outfit.

This was going to be an interesting Christmas for her.

-

Glue.

Slap.

Press.

Repeat.

Finding some free time, Jou managed to place the finishing touches on the special gift for Seto. He glanced around his work area and found extra pictures. He tried to give back some of them, but the younger Kaiba refused them to take them back, saying they were extras. It made him wonder what Mokuba was up to and Yugi too since they both helped him with the gift. So in short, Jou ended up with several pictures of Seto, Mokuba, and their small group. Once he sorted through the leftover pictures, he figured he would make Seto another special gift. Unfortunately, he didn't have the material in hand so he needed to head out.

It wasn't that he didn't like going out, but he didn't like dealing with last minute shoppers. Past experiences have taught him; yet, he always seemed to forget or didn't have enough money early so he ended up fighting those last minute shoppers. He planned on avoiding the mall all together, because it seemed to attract them with their sales and Christmas hype. Besides, he just needed one item, and it wasn't worth the hassle since he had two gifts for Seto.

Speaking of which, Jou had a hard time deciding whether to give the brunette the present in person or as a secret admirer. In either case, there would be negative affects. If Jou gave it in person, Seto could laugh at him, saying that the blond was an idiot for thinking he swung that way or he could flat out reject him. On the other hand, if he sent it as a secret Santa gift, Seto wouldn't know who sent it to him and would probably believe it was another person that gave it to him. There was a bright side to these decisions. Seto might return Jou's feelings or the blond might be able to discover where Seto's heart lay.

-Maybe I can ask Yugi about this. - Jou thought as he exited his home, donning a thick jacket. It seemed to be a logical choice since Yugi was more sensitive and understanding when it came to relationships.

Trudging down the snow covered side walk, Jou was trying to decide where to go. The mall would be his last resort and only if he was desperate enough to try. One time he had nearly been run over by a large lady, who was running to get the last pack of duel monster cards, which he was about to pick up. Nevertheless, he was forced to look elsewhere for the pack.

Despite the lightly falling snow and the mounts of it on the ground, the streets were rather busy. Many stores had more than their average number of customers. Every one of them held their doors open later than usual, since the profits were high. Most family owned stores were opened as well, including the two game shops. Even though the area was bustling with the Christmas shoppers, there was more than enough room to maneuver, unlike certain places.

Shoving his hand in his pocket, Jou ignored the colorful Christmas displays and those annoying carolers, who, in his opinion, had nothing else better to do than to annoy the hell out of others. This opinion was the same as Seto, Bakura, Marik, and at times Malik. He watched as a few children engaged in a snowball fight before being reprimanded by their mothers. They were kids for crying out loud; they were supposed to have fun. He supposed he felt that way, since his own childhood was pretty much destroyed by his father's alcoholic activities. Basically, he raised himself, and when he was old enough, he had to get a job to support the both of them. He had to grow up faster than most children.

Down on the corner of the block, there was one of those volunteers for a charity. He wore a large Santa suit and was ringing a bell as he politely asked for donations. If he had enough money, he would have given a little. He knew what it was like to go without food for days and not having something warm to wear. That was before he became a bully and acquired a legitimate job. His budget had always been tight, because he was either buying food or beer, which his father never appreciated. Somehow he forced himself to save enough money to buy Christmas presents for his friends.

Today he had been paid. Since he was putting in more hours, he had a little extra to spend on his present. If he had something extra, then why wasn't he donating it like he wanted to? Love was completely blind and at times. Or in this case, totally out to lunch.

His little walk eventually led him to a bookstore. Jou didn't think it would be there, but it couldn't hurt to take a look. If one of his friends caught him in there, he or she most likely would faint. Okay, it wasn't that drastic, but Jou and books never seemed to get along. The only 'books' he appeared to read were comic books. Actually, bookstores carried comic books, but he usually went to a comic book store. They had more of a selection.

Once he entered the store, Jou loosened his jacket. It was a lot warmer in here than out there. As usual, the store had several Christmas decorations and Christmas oriented products out on display. Some of them were on sale to encourage shoppers to buy them. He strolled past them, not even giving them a second glance. Seto hated that kind of stuff unless it involved duel monsters. No one knew the reason behind his, even his brother was confused.

Making his way down the aisle, he felt someone roughly bump into him and was about to tell that person off when he realized who it was. "Otogi, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in your game shop doing something or another?"

The said person turned around with an equally shocked expression. He recognized the voice, but he was having a hard time accepting the fact that Jou was in a bookstore of all places. "I should be asking you the same thing. You never are one to visit a bookstore." Once the mutual shock wore off, Otogi was the first to answer the question. "I have a few errands to run, and I needed to get away from my shop. It's a madhouse down there with the newly released duel monster game. I'm having a hard time keeping the shelves stocked, and Yugi tells me it's the same over at his place."

"You poor guys," Jou teased in a friendly manner. Ever since the Battle City Tournament, they had become friends, but not close friends. It was a start to say the least. "I'm glad I don't work in a game shop for that matter." He did however feel sorry for Yugi.

"Lucky bastard," Otogi grumped under his breath before remembering that Jou never answered his implied question. "What are you doing here out of all places?" A light blush was his response. "Doing some last minute shopping for your boyfriend?"

"What?" Jou sputtered, trying to form a coherent sentence and failing miserably. Didn't Yugi say everyone knew he had a crush but no on who?

Upon seeing the blond tongue tied, Otogi knew he was right. He had his suspicions when he saw Jou not reacting to drop dead gorgeous women, even if it was only in pictures. "It's not hard to figure out for someone with my intelligence level." He wasn't even going to add that anyone could read him like a book. A smirk found its way onto his face as he clasped his hands behind his neck.

Jou narrowed his eyes in a suspicious manner. "Yeah right." He wasn't going to buy that excuse. Most likely someone told him, and he hoped it wasn't Yugi, Ryou, or Malik. It was hard to be mad at any of them, because they had very overprotective boyfriends who wouldn't hesitate to send his ass to the shadow realm should he upset their lovers. "That's the day hell freezes over." Actually it had and Satan was currently throwing a hissy fit.

Otogi merely chuckled. It wasn't the mutt's fault he was that dense. Then again it could be. Maybe he was dropped on his head too many times when he was a baby or something. This irritated the blond to ends. "What do you plan on doing about your boyfriend?" –I wish he would pay attention more attention to me than her.-

"He's not my boyfriend," Jou stuttered, his blush deepening. He wasn't even sure if Seto swung that way, but Mokuba kept convincing him to give the gift to Seto. Damn, he completely forgot the younger brother knew his secret. Not good, especially if he and Yugi were planning the party or at least that was the impression he received. "At least not yet anyways. I hope he will be."

"I know the feeling," Otogi sighed this time, leaning against the sturdy wall. If only Honda looked his way for one, then he would definitely see the signs. He had started by dropping subtle hints such as spending time with the group and giving him glances every now and then. Unfortunately, the brunette was dense, but in reality he was more focused on her. "If she wasn't there, then he would have been mine by now."

Jou was caught off guard, his embarrassment momentarily gone. His mind tried to make sense of it. First of all, Otogi admitted to liking a guy. That wasn't too surprising since he dressed a certain way and acted that way too. Second, wasn't Otogi after his sister or something? Not that he wanted it. It confused him all to hell, because he and Shizuka talked about it in one of their many conversations over the phone. "I thought you were after my sister."

"She's nice and all, but she's not the one for me," Otogi said, choosing his words very carefully since big brother was here. He knew Jou wouldn't hesitate to let his fist do the talking in public. The blond was very protective of his sister especially after their time spent away from each other. Shizuka explained to him their family trouble and how Jou wasn't getting along with their mother. It surprised him that she would tell him, but after he had seen them interact, he figured that she thought it was better to explain. "The more I thought about her, the more I realized I liked her as a sister rather than girlfriend. It's really strange, but not any stranger than who I have feelings for."

"I'm not sure if he even swings that way," Jou confessed, becoming a little more comfortable talking about his love life or lack of it with the dice master. For some strange reason, he trusted the guy, even with their past. It might have something to do with their current situation. They had some sort of connection and brotherly type of bond. "If I do anything, he may freak out. At least you know about yours or at least I think you do."

Shaking his head, Otogi replied, ""No, I don't think so since he likes Anzu, though I don't see why."

"You know if you try to hit on Yugi, Yami would send you to the shadow realm in the blink of an eye," Jou winced as he remembered the threats the pharaoh had made against him. Yami thought Jou was too close to Yugi, but the little hikari proved his loyalty, and the blond reassured him by not hitting on Yugi.

Otogi gasped in terror as he stumbled away from the wall. "After what we've been through, there's no way I'm messing with Yugi, Ryou, or Malik. I happen to enjoy living even if it is a pain at times."

"So if you don't like them or their counterparts," Jou said, trying to piece the puzzle together, "then that means you like either Kaiba or Honda." He tried not to growl when he said Seto's surname.

"Take a chill pill," Otogi tried to calm the irate duelist. From the way he mentioned the billionaire's name, he figured Jou had feelings for Seto. "I'm not interested in that brunette. Honda, on the other hand…" He had that dreamy look that fan girls normally get whenever they were around their crushes.

In less than a second, Jou went from pissed off to being confused. –Honda? Honda, out of all people, Otogi loved Honda? I must be dreaming or something. Maybe it was something I ate or didn't eat. I don't know- "Are you sure about that?"

"I just wish he would look my way for once," Otogi sighed dreamily. It was tearing him apart that Honda was so near but so totally out of his reach.

-Even if I can't get Seto, maybe I can help them get together. Honda deserves to be happy, and as his best friend, I will make it happen, one way or another. – Jou thought as his lips twisted into an evil smirk.

-

No requirements, but more character development for Anzu, Mai, Otogi, and Jou.

Can you guess who Mai will be paired up with?


	7. Matchmaking for Dummies

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (7/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, Mai, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: Matchmaking for Idiots

The Day before Christmas

Peeking out of his room, Jou cautiously made his way to the bathroom once he was sure the coast was clear. It was the same routine every morning ever since his mother left him with this bastard. Yet he never gave up hope that his father would change for the better one of these days.

Somehow his father would drink himself out cold and then wake up either in the late morning or early afternoon with one hell of a hang over. He then proceeded to blame Jou for this if the kid was at home. Since the law required Jou to attend school, he was gone for most of the week. So his father became angry at Jou for not being there, resulting in harsher injuries.

This morning was different. His father was nowhere to be seen. Most likely he was hitting on some poor woman in attempt to bed her. Jou hated that. He hated the fact his father had so many one night stands, most likely the result of too much alcohol. For all he knew, he could have several half-sisters or brothers. Still he couldn't bring himself to completely hate his father. It was the same way with his mother. At least he had Shizuka on his side. He didn't know what he would do without her encouraging words.

After shoving these depressing thoughts aside, Jou wandered into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and wrinkled his nose. There was nothing good to eat. Actually, there was nothing to eat at all, unless one counted the baking soda in the back. He needed to go the supermarket and pick up something edible. Why couldn't his father get a job and for once pay for his own beer?

Suddenly the phone rang, causing Jou to jump an entire foot off the ground. Who would be calling him at this hour? He knew it couldn't be from the school, since it was vacation, and he was too busy with work to cause any trouble. Shizuka usually called at night, because she knew about their father's drinking problem. Yugi was busy helping his grandfather at the store while Anzu had her dance rehearsal. Honda usually wasn't awake at this hour if he could help it.

Jou picked up the phone and lazily said, "Hello."

"Do you know how long I have been waiting for you to pick up your lazy ass and answer the phone? A familiar but annoyed voice asked. He didn't even wait for an answer. "You should be lucky I'm patient."

"Right," Jou drawled, an amused smile forming on his lips. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your annoying voice?" Ever since they confessed their crushes, they had become closer friends.

"Hardy har har," Otogi said in mock annoyance. He wasn't sure why he called Jou in the first place. Maybe he wanted company for breakfast, or it could be a way to get more information on Honda. He didn't know. "I was wondering if you've eaten breakfast."

Looking at his almost bare kitchen, Jou winced. He barely had enough money to pay the bills let alone food. Plus, he was saving a little each paycheck to buy decent presents for his friends. "No, I woke up about ten minutes ago."

"Great, then would you like to join me for breakfast," Otogi inquired, silently hoping the blond would accept the invitation. Of course, it wasn't a date. It was more like two friends getting together for breakfast.

Jou hesitated. He knew Otogi didn't like to eat at cheap restaurants, but they were all he could afford. "I'm kind of short on cash." There, he'd said it.

"Is that all?" Otogi waved off. He thought the blond had enough money by the way he ate. Jou was like a bottomless pit in his opinion. Then again so was Honda. "I can pay for yours if that's the only thing holding you back."

"Is that a date?" Jou teased the dice master, who blushed and scowled at the same time. He waited awhile for an answer. When he received none, he prodded the black haired young man for one.

Mumbling to himself, Otogi knew the blond was only teasing but still…… He was only being nice. "No, it's a friendly get together between friends. You know the ones you and your friends go on."

Jou chuckled this time. "We usually pay for our own meals." To him, it was a friendly banter. He did it all the time with Honda, and they got along fine. "Hey, I was just teasing."

"I know," Otogi said, stretching out in his chair. Shortly after their confessions, he had to return his shop. His employees were having trouble with a group of people. It seemed the new Kaiba Corp game had been sold out at his shop. Customers were furious. Some were waited for an hour just to buy it. They were told that the stores were accepting preorders. Some of them let it go, since they were going to get the game in the near future, but others were plain unruly.

"Expect Honda to act this way at times," Jou warned. He knew the brunette ever since they became school bullies. They guarded each other's backs and didn't trust others until Yugi entered their lives. "No hurt feelings?"

Otogi scoffed at this. "I was merely taken back." There was no way he would let the mutt get the better of him.

"So we still on for breakfast?" Jou inquired on the hopeful side. His stomach had reminded him a second ago. He needed to eat and who was he to pass up a free meal?

The dice master could practically see Jou grinning from ear to ear in anticipation of a good meal. Maybe that can be his payment for the information on the brunette. "Definitely. I'm sending someone to pick you up. It would take you forever to reach the restaurant."

"Very funny," Jou retorted sarcastically, though glad Otogi was getting the hang of this friendly banter. It wasn't his fault he didn't have enough money to buy a car let alone maintain one. "It's not my fault I can't afford a car. If my pops wasn't so…." His voice trailed off. He almost revealed his family secret. "So when's that person coming?"

"He'll be there in twenty minutes," Otogi replied, not liking how Jou had become suddenly depressed. He knew it involved Jou's father, but he wasn't going to force the blond to tell. If Jou wanted to speak, then it would be him doing it willingly.

Jou glanced over at his clock. He had twenty minutes before his ride arrived, and he was still wearing his pajamas. "I gotta go and change unless you want to see me in my pajamas."

"I'll take a rain check on that."

"So tell me why did you volunteer to buy me breakfast?" Jou asked, eyeing the dice master warily. He knew his companion was up to something.

"Do I need a reason to spend time with my friends?" Otogi returned innocently while resting his chin on his hands. Well, it wasn't like he had enough time between school and running his store. Actually, he had more time than a certain CEO.

Once again, Jou gave him a suspicious look. The dice master had been spending more time with their group lately. "Yes, you always have a reason."

"And if I do?" Otogi inquired, relaxing despite the blond's suspicions. Well, he usually had a motive behind his actions. This time it was no different. If he had to spend a lot of money, it was worth it to find out information on a certain brunette.

Jou sighed in exasperation. He didn't like being kidnapped… Actually, he went willingly, but he didn't like being used. It was a humiliating experience. "Listen if you want something, just spill it. I'll see what I can do, but I can't guarantee anything."

Otogi held his hands up in defeat. "You caught me." He lowered his hands, flexing his fingers into the shape of a triangle. "I wanted to know more about Hiroto." It meant swallowing his pride and asking for help, but it wasn't like he was doing too well on his own anyways.

"Is that all?" Jou inquired. He doubted Otogi's motives, but love can make people do the strangest things. Take Yami for example. Okay, it wasn't that drastic, but still he changed.

"Yes," Otogi confirmed, nodding his head. "I'm not going anywhere with him, and you already know about it. Plus you're his best friend so you must know something about him." He was certain that they would each know what the other liked and didn't like.

Scratching his head, Jou reluctantly agreed. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you a little about Honda. Besides, you're feeding me, and I know I ain't cheap." While waiting for their orders to arrive, he informed the dice master what Honda liked, hated, his hobbies, and a few other things.

Jou ordered the deluxe breakfast, which was enough to feed two people, while Otogi ordered the good morning meal, which was enough to fill an average man. Their waitress almost immediately recognized Otogi from TV and attempted to discretely flirt with him. Unfortunately for her, all of her advances were ignored. The blond scowled at her, and she understood the meaning before leaving with a huff.

"There's something you should know," Jou said, not wanting to bring it up, but he did have a right know. Taking a deep breath, he plunged into the unknown. "In the past, he used to date a girl named Miho, but she broke up with him. He hasn't dated ever since or at least to my knowledge he hasn't. You already know about my sister and Anzu."

Nodding his head, Otogi showed he understood. "It doesn't matter. It's in the past, and I doubt Hiroto would be looking if he hadn't gotten over her." He hoped his theory was correct. One could never be certain when it came to matters of the heart.

"I wouldn't keep your hopes up," Jou warned. They began to dig into their meals as they chatted about their love lives or lack there of and anything else they could think of.

"So Jou, have you always been this way?" Otogi inquired. A confused look was his response. He then mentally hit himself for being so vague. "I meant have you been lacking in the finance department lately."

Damn, why did he have to bring that up? - Jou thought angrily. He wasn't angry at Otogi for pointing it out, but rather himself for letting the other find out. "I've been short in the financial department ever since my pops was laid off." Otogi didn't have to know how long though. His father hadn't been able to get a job for the past two years. During breaks, Jou requested to be assigned to full time status, and they didn't mind since it wasn't long enough to receive any benefits.

"If your father needs a job, I'm sure I can find something for him to do at my shop or maybe a certain brunette can," Otogi said, hinting towards Jou's crush. If Kaiba wouldn't hire the man, he figured he could make a few changes to his employees' schedules to accommodate him.

Shaking his head, Jou sighed gloomily. If that were the only problem, it would make life easier. Unfortunately, his life was never easy. "It's not a matter of getting a job, more like keeping one."

This was becoming interesting. "Does he have any medical problems?" It was the first thing he asked when interviewing potential employees. He needed workers who could carry heavy packages. Also he needed people who could keep up with hyper children.

Once again, Jou shook his head. "No, he has a drinking problem. I've tried to get him to attend alcoholics anonymous, but he refused to go. He said he doesn't have a drinking problem, but everyone else agrees with me." Dropping his head to his arms, he sighed once more. "I can't force him to attend unless he has a court order."

"As much as I would like to help, there's nothing I can do until he admits he has a problem," Otogi said wistfully. He knew alcoholics had a greater tendency to be abusive. If Jou's father couldn't maintain a job, then that would mean Jou was earning the family's main income.

"It's not your problem," the blond assured him. He didn't want any of his friends to become involved in his personal problems. They had enough of their own problems as it was. "What are you giving Honda?"

A sudden change in topic. I understand if he feels uncomfortable, but something has to be done, and I know the right man for the job. - "I bought him a motorcycle, and yes, I know he already has one. However, there is the latest model with all the bells and whistles. What did you buy Seto?"

Blushing Jou replied, "I made him a couple of gifts and bought a plushie for him." Damn, why couldn't he afford a nice present for Seto?

"What did you make for him?" Otogi inquired, curiously. He couldn't help but smirk when Jou's blush became deeper. It must be something personal or very embarrassing, considering the blond's reaction. He wondered if Jou was going to give it in person.

"It's nothing like that," Jou replied hastily and defensively. –I bet Otogi will definitely put the present I'm going to give him to good use. - He squinted his eyes as he tried to find the right words. Thinking was not one of his strengths as quite a few people had told him.

One black brow was raised. "Then what would it be like?"

"It's a memory book and a journal," Jou muttered. He had to repeat this twice since the dice master didn't hear it the first two times. "I'm not sure if he'll accept them, knowing they came from me. And I don't want to even think how'd react to my…. You know."

"You're afraid of being rejected on the basis of your gender?" Otogi asked apprehensively. The nod confirmed his suspicions. "Look, I know what you're going through so you're not alone. If you never tell, then you may lose your chance, and who knows what could have happened?"

"As much as I hate to say this. You're right," Jou reluctantly agreed.

"If it bothers you that much, then give them to him under the guise of a secret admirer," Otogi stepped in, effectively stopping his companion's doubts. "He won't know who sent it, and later you can work up enough courage to tell him you sent them. I'll tell you what. Tonight, I'll help you get your presents to your lover boy."

"Really?" Jou asked, wondering why the dice master had become so friendly and helpful. Maybe Otogi wanted something, or maybe he really was trying to be his friend. In either case, it was nice to get some help.

"Yes." Otogi confirmed. He was a man of honor.

"We'll do it tonight."

"Jou, how did I let you talk me into this?" Honda grumbled, trying to warm his cold hands. They felt like they were going to freeze off at any second. He needed those hands for school…. Yeah right. It was more like for riding his motorcycle and dueling.

Jou gave his best friend a cheeky smile. "You owed me big time, and I'm cashing in." He then went back to looking out for someone.

Honda sighed, "Well then, what are we doing here?" He wondered if the blond's sanity had gone on a permanent vacation. Currently, they were standing outside of Otogi's game shop in the freezing snow when they could have been standing inside the nice and warm store.

"We're waiting for someone," Jou shot back as he held onto the poorly wrapped gifts. He opted to give the memory book and the journal as a secret admirer while giving the plushie in person. The packages were tucked safely under his jacket. "He should be coming out any second now or else he had better have a really good excuse."

An elderly lady stepped out of the shop with an indignant look on her face. It looked like she ate a lemon and really didn't like it at all. Her gray hair appeared very disheveled, and an attempt was made to fix her hair, but she wasn't able to get it back to its original form.

Soon enough, the lights were turned off, causing Honda to look back with curiosity. Jou didn't seem to be disturbed by this. When the brunette asked his best friend, the blond shrugged it off. The brunette was becoming more and more annoyed by the lack of answers and the cold weather wasn't helping matters either.

The door opened and the bell sounded. An irritated dice master stepped out of the shop. Lost in his dark thoughts, he didn't notice a certain brunette standing there; however, he did see a blond patiently waiting for him. "Sorry, I'm late. This one bitch just wouldn't get the hint. I told her we had sold out, but we were accepting preorders. They will arrive within three business days. That is fast, especially considering how many orders they will receive."

"No wonder she looked like she swallowed a lemon," Jou commented. He shifted around after having to stand there in the snow for awhile. In reality, it had been about twelve minutes.

Otogi snorted. "I wished she did and better if she choked on it while she was at it." With his back to the brunette, he didn't even notice Honda until he coughed to get their attention. "Honda, what are you doing here?" There was much blushing and stammering involved.

Of course being dense, Honda blamed the dice master's rosy cheeks on the cold weather. "I don't know what I'm doing here other than Jou dragged me here." He glanced over to Jou for an answer to that. "What are we doing here exactly?"

"We're here to make a house call," Jou announced with a mischievous smile. He then pulled his best friend over to a very flustered Otogi. "What are we waiting for? An invitation?"

"Jou," Honda warned. He had had enough of these elusive answers or, in some cases, no answers at all. "Exactly whose house are we visiting?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Jou replied cheekily. He then turned to the dice master, ignoring the protests from his best friend. "So where's our ride?"

Otogi jabbed his thumb towards the store. "It's in the back. Honda, why don't you go wait there if you're cold? My driver should be there, since I called him before I left the store." He didn't know why the brunette was there and intended to ask a certain blond about it once the person of his affections was out of the way. Besides, he wanted to make Honda feel as comfortable as possible, and he doubted the brunette was comfortable standing in the snow.

"About time someone took my feelings into consideration," Honda stated with an indignant huff, though they knew he was only joking around. "That car had better be warm on the inside." A hot drink would be a nice bonus, but he knew it was pushing his luck. "Don't take too long, I may fall asleep." He then leaned slightly on Otogi's shoulder, causing the raven-haired boy to nearly faint.

Once the man of his affections was out of sight, Otogi whirled on the blond, who was feigning innocence. Sadly, it didn't work on the dice master, as Jou wasn't as cute as two people or his crush. "You just had to call him here, didn't you?"

"Honda and I are best friends," Jou explained as if everyone was supposed to know. It was a known fact amongst their circle. "We cover each other's back." –Please let him buy that lame excuse. I can't think of another one.-

Yes, it would be natural that Jou wanted his best friend to be there. After all, they were technically trespassing, and on Seto's property to boot! Still, he was a bit apprehensive about this.

"Besides, you get to spend more time with him this way," Jou suggestively hinted to the dice master as he nudged him on his way to the car. He was too cold, and he wasn't about to explain his actions either.

Otogi knew what he had to do.

"Would someone care to explain why are we standing in front of Kaiba's estate/" Honda inquired, eying his two secretive companions. This was seriously ticking him off. He hated being out of the loop.

"We're here to drop off something, and NO, it's not a prank," Otogi answered this time as he draped an arm over Honda's shoulder in a friendly manner. He was internally grateful the brunette didn't shove him off or call him any derogatory names. That was a good sign.

Jou's hands were shaking as he gazed upon the Kaiba estate. He was more nervous than when he dueled against Malik… or was it Marik? He could never figure out which one was which until they had their own bodies.

"Let's do this before we're caught," Honda suggested, somewhat panicking. He was confused as hell as to why the dice master had his arm on him, but he figured the stress was getting to him.

Otogi scoffed. "It's late at night. I'm sure Kaiba has to wake up early in the morning so that he can get back to that precious business of his. You know how he loves to work, even on holidays."

"You don't say?" Jou said in a sarcastic tone while rolling his eyes to add to the affect. "If I didn't know better, I would say he was engaged to his work."

"Engaged? More like married," Honda added in his two cents worth. He didn't mind the dice master's arm on him. In fact, it actually felt kind of nice in a strange way. He absently wondered how Otogi felt without his clothing. -………… What am I thinking? I'm straight! ... Or at least I think I am….-

"You can say that again," Jou laughed at his best friend's comment. Good thing, Seto had the front driveway cleared of snow. He had to or he wouldn't have been able to ride his limo to his work or any other place. Plus, Mokuba would be upset since he couldn't visit his friends. "It makes me wonder if he's the hen-pecked husband or the grouchy wife."

"Both I think," Otogi commented. He noticed how the brunette was responding and grinned. His chances were increasing ever so slightly. "Maybe he's a hen-pecked husband on a constant PMS?"

The three laughed as they made their way to Kaiba's mailbox.

On the second floor, Seto was on his way to his bedroom when he noticed a car pull into his driveway. He then headed to where Mokuba had left his camera and picked it up. Turning it on, he noticed it had enough power to last for half an hour, but he didn't need it for that long. He only needed it to catch whoever was out on his property this late at night.

It was then he noticed who they were. Jou was with Honda and Otogi. They were discussing something before they headed off somewhere. He kept the camera trained on them as evidence in case they were up to something. Both Honda and Jou were known for being pranksters at times. He wasn't certain about Otogi. The dice master was a business man much like himself and should know better than to pull pranks, considering the consequences.

Seto made himself comfortable. It looked like they were going to be awhile with the way they were walking and talking. By the looks on their faces, it was obviously something funny. They then paused and were busting up with laughter before continuing on their way. Just then, he noticed a few packages the blond was holding. He wondered what kind of prank Jou was planning, and almost called security, but he decided against it.

The brunette was curious as to what they were going to do and wasn't going to hinder them. Besides, he had evidence should they destroy anything on his property. Even though he didn't need the money for the repairs, it was the principle of the matter. They destroyed his property; why should he have to pay? Okay, so they didn't do anything yet.

The three stopped in front of his mailbox. The blond then tried to push the packages into his mailbox, but they wouldn't fit. He made several attempts and his two friends tried helping at some points. It was obvious they didn't want to damage whatever was in the packages, because they were handling them with great care. Seto swore if that was stink bombs, he would have their asses on a silver platter or better yet one of those pointy spikes.

Back on ground level, the three were still having a hard time getting the packages into the mailbox. "It's no use," Honda announced in exasperation. They had been trying to get the packages into the mailbox without damaging them with hardly any success. Currently, one was stuck and pulling it back out was equally hard. His best friend never did say what was in the packages, but it was important to Jou so it became important to him.

Even though they were standing there looking like idiots, Otogi felt it was worth the humiliation. It allowed him to spend time with Honda and it also let him actually hold the brunette briefly, or maybe luck out with an occasional accidental touch here and there. Well, it was the other way around due their differences in height. A few times, Honda had to catch the dice master before he fell into the snow. Needless to say, Otogi was in heaven for that moment. He wished they would last longer and occur more frequently. A couple of times he fell on purpose, but he knew Honda would catch on if he did it often. Let's just leave it. I'm sure someone will pick them up if they can get them out."

"But," Jou whimpered. He had spent a lot of time making those presents so he wanted Seto to receive them. Who knew what people would do to get back at Seto?

"You worry too much," Otogi assured him before flicking his nose, much to Jou annoyance. He then picked up his cell phone from his pocket and called his driver. As it stood, the driver was going to drop the other two at their homes.

"But what about you?" Honda asked, concerned over the dice master's health. "It's awfully cold out here, and you wouldn't want to miss Mokuba's party?"

Otogi merely waved it off even though his stomach was doing flip flops and some cartwheels too. –He cares. He really does care. Maybe I do have a chance after all. - "I don't live far from here so I'll walk. Besides, it would give me time to think."

"Whatever you say, but promise me you won't stay out for long." Honda requested very seriously but sincerely as well. He felt a hand squeeze his shoulder in a reassuring manner before he was dragged off by an impatient blond.

Looking up at the mansion, Otogi knew what he had to do. –I know you're watching, Kaiba Seto.-

XP There are so many subtle hints at what's to come. Let's see if you can guess them.


	8. Let the Humiliation Commence!

Title: The Chaos before (and during) Christmas (8/8)

Author: Chibi Wingzero

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou, Yami/Yugi, Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Honda/Otogi, Mai, one sided Anzu/Yami, one sided Honda/Anzu

Beta: MOFAF (MomOfFluffyAndFluffier).

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: I am merely borrowing the Yu-Gi-Oh cast. They will be returned in one piece…. Hopefully.

Summary: Both Seto and Jou have been wanting each other for a long time. Mokuba and Yugi have decided to do something about it. Together they plan an unforgettable Christmas party.

Chapter Title: Let the Humiliation Commence!

Christmas Day

Finally Christmas had arrived and everyone was making last minute preparations for the party. The servants were scrambling to make sure the party was a success. It was Mokuba's first party, and he wanted it to be a memorable one. If he and Yugi had their way, it was going to be one nobody was going to forget for a long time.

The decorations had already been placed or hung. Well, there was an exception. After the reindeer incident, Mokuba allowed Malik to keep the plushie if he didn't make Bakura go screw a cactus. The tomb robber was thankful, but being his sadistic self, he wasn't about to show it. Instead, Ryou thanked the younger Kaiba.

As for the partridge, it was currently brooding in the pear tree, but this time, someone had shoved a little birdie elf costume on it. When the servant tried to put the costume on it, it had given him such a hard time. It took two servants to actually put the elf outfit on the partridge. Both of which didn't escape without minor injuries.

Mokuba and Yugi had coordinated what they would wear. They managed to get Malik and Ryou along with their darker halves involved. How they did it nobody knew. It wasn't hard to tell with Marik. He was heavily addicted to sex, and everyone knew it since, Marik tended to take him any place at any time. Fortunately, Malik had enough common sense and self-control when it came to that area. His animal obsessions were a different story.

Bounding around the designated room, Mokuba checked everything once more to make sure everything was in place. He had been careful not to dirty his elf outfit. His brother constantly gave him a questioning look in the morning, but he didn't let that dampen his spirit. However, he was annoyed his brother chose to go to work instead of stay at home, but if he played his cards right, Seto would be rushing back home to supervise the party.

The servants were to work that morning preparing the food and anything else Mokuba could think of for the party. Afterwards, they were given the choice of staying and earning extra money or going home to their families. Less than half chose to stay while the others celebrated the day with their families. Robert was one of those staying. He felt as if the brothers were his family. His blood relatives were either dead or didn't acknowledge him due to his employer.

Now that everything was set and checked, all they needed were the guests. The time seemed to move slower and slower. Mokuba paced back and forth near the entrance to the mansion, eager to greet his guests. He would stop every once in awhile to fidget with his elf outfit and look at the clock. There was still some time before his guests were scheduled to arrive. Since they started preparing for the party early, they had nothing to do.

The doorbell rang, and Mokuba rushed towards the door, passing by the servants. He flung open the wooden doors to reveal to short people in matching Santa outfits, complete with red hats. In reality, they were Yugi and Yami in red suits with white fluffy trimmings.

"Why are we in these outfits?" Yami inquired, looking over his suit and readjusting his hat. He wondered why his hikari wanted him to be wearing this particular outfit to the party. Then he noticed Mokuba wearing an elf outfit. It clicked. Mokuba and Yugi must have planned this. "Oh, never mind. I clearly see why."

Both Mokuba and Yugi were wearing identical impish grins, making Yami take a step back in fear. He definitely knew they were up to something when they were acting strangely. For the past few days, he wondered why Yugi had been so secretive. Normally, they confided in each other with their secrets. Now he knew the reason why or at least he had a vague idea.

"You two had better come inside," Mokuba said, ushering the two into the warm mansion. He took a sidestep to avoid being plowed over by the sack Yami was carrying. They must have some good presents or at least large ones. When they were inside, he closed the doors. "What brings you here an hour early?"

Yugi had already started taking off his coat when he responded. "I'm here to make sure our plan goes according to schedule." He glanced over at Mokuba for confirmation. "Is everything in place?"

The younger Kaiba nodded his head before giving a cheeky . "Yes, I have personally checked twice. Hopefully we won't have to use our back up plan." He then bounded over towards Yugi and began to whisper to him. Of course, Yugi automatically cut off the link before they began to whisper.

This frustrated Yami to no ends. He hated all this secrecy, and now he found out about the plan or at least was trying. Neither of his two companions were willing to offer any answers. He coughed to get their attention, but they were completely wrapped up in their conversation. They didn't even notice him. "What are the two of you up to?" Unconsciously, he had been tapping his foot.

The two 'innocent angels' looked up at the annoyed dark spirit. "What do you ever mean?" They simultaneously asked before giggling madly.

"You know what I'm talking about," Yami warned them. He was not a person to be led around or kept in the dark. He knew they wouldn't harm anyone intentionally.

"Just a little match making," Yugi replied with enthusiasm. If their plan worked, then there would be a new couple. Little did he know there was another couple in the works, maybe even a third.

A brow was raised. Several more questions than answers appeared in his head. The pharaoh could only wonder which unlucky couple had the misfortune of getting their attention. "Who are the unlucky victims? I meant the couple."

Mokuba answered this time. "My brother and Jou. If you're wondering, they both have feelings for each other. We helped Jou make a personal gift for Seto. Then there's my brother's hidden stash. Trust me, you don't want to know."

The pharaoh frowned as he was in deep thought before replying with a smirk. "Count me in." This was going to be an interesting Christmas party. "What do you have in mind?" His hikari and Mokuba began to whisper their plans for the unfortunate couple as they walked towards the party room.

Thirty minutes later, a merry Ryou and a scowling Bakura appeared at the door. Their outfits made them appear like thin snowmen. The dark spirit wore a dark top hat while his hikari wore a snow hat. Both had matching red and greens striped scarves with white tassels at the ends.

"Sorry, we're early," Ryou politely apologized while bowing. He knew it would take a long time to convince his dark half to wear the outfit. Surprisingly, it didn't take long for Bakura to cave in, though he wondered why and why. He guessed it was because he was annoying, and that Bakura was frustrated.

"Whatever," Bakura snorted. He couldn't believe his innocent hikari managed to persuade him to wear this ridiculous outfit. After this party, he was going to burn it, and then blame it on Marik. –Stupid pyro.-

"Come in," Mokuba said, stepping aside. "Yami and Yugi are already in the room. Also please try not to aggravate Yami."

"The pharaoh's here?" The tomb robber perked up. He swung the bag over his shoulder, nearly plowing over the younger Kaiba. If he had to wear this ridiculous outfit, then most likely the pharaoh had to wear one too. He bet it was going to be worse than his.

Mokuba had to dive out of the way. He looked over at Ryou for an answer.

"He brought a disposable camera," Ryou answered, shaking his head. He knew he should not have taught him how to use a camera. "We'd better go before he causes any damage with that mouth of his." Bakura tended to say things before he thought of the consequences; thus earning him a few bruises and then some.

Once his guests had entered, Mokuba shut the door. He hoped Bakura wouldn't provoke or challenge Yami. His brother didn't appreciate having a shadow game played in his mansion. "I hope they don't duel."

"Knowing Bakura, most likely they will," Ryo sighed, walking with Mokuba to the party room. He knew his dark half loved to provoke or annoy Yami in any way, shape or form. It was one of the tomb robber's favorite hobbies besides killing people or creating chaos. "You know how Yami is when someone challenges him to a duel."

"Right," Mokuba groaned, wondering why he invited the dark spirits to his Christmas party in the first place. Well, he would have to since their lighter haves were coming. If Yugi was coming, then Yami was definitely not going to be left behind. If the pharaoh was coming, then Bakura and Marik would not miss this chance.

Once they reached the room, they found a smirking pharaoh and an extremely pissed off tomb robber. Bakura was yelling several insults in Egyptian at Yami, who seemed to be ignoring the insults. Yugi attempted to calm the irate tomb robber with little success. The remaining servants were going about their business, carefully avoiding the irate dark spirit.

"What is it this time, Bakura?" Ryou inquired in exasperation. He was used to his yami throwing a hissy fit every now and then. At least that was what he thought they were.

Pointing his finger at the pharaoh, Bakura scowled. "Why does he get to wear that and I have to wear this?" He tugged on his snowman outfit and glared at it as if trying to set the damn thing on fire. He could only wish.

"I don't know that answer," Ryou honestly answered. He hadn't been the one to get the outfits. Glancing over at Yugi and then Mokuba, he silently asked them to answer the question.

"We figured the red Santa suit would complement Yami's eyes," Yugi explained to the others. He and Mokuba brain stormed costume ideas. "That and I liked it too. When we saw a snowman, we instantly thought of you two and that's why we chose that particular outfit."

Their responses varied. Yami seemed to be pleased he didn't have to wear that silly outfit. Plus, Yugi looked rather cute and delicious in his matching Santa suit. Bakura, on the other hand, was still angry. Why did the pharaohs always get the good stuff? He couldn't help what color his hair was. It was his father's fault. Once again, the remaining servants avoided that dark spirit.

"I think it looks nice on you," a soft voice whispered, breaking the silence. He then made his way over to Bakura and snuggled up against him. Maybe he can prevent a fight from erupting, since the tomb robber usually was the instigator.

As a result of his action, a blush found its way to the tomb robber's cheeks. He opened his mouth to say something, but quickly shut it, having nothing better to say. Noticing the smirk on the pharaoh, curses flowed freely from his mouth.

The doorbell interrupted Bakura's rant. Minutes later, Malik, Marik, and Honda entered the room. Upon seeing the tomb robber, both Egyptians busted up laughing. Honda politely stifled his laugher, because he didn't want another trip to the shadow realm. Marik had none too gently placed the bag of gifts on the floor sometime during his laughing bout.

Bakura twitched several times before glaring at both Egyptians, who were wearing matching reindeer outfits. Why couldn't he get something like that? But no, he had this stupid snowman outfit. He also glared at Mokuba and Yugi, who were whispering to each other. –They are going to pay for this.- First thing was to get those two laughing morons. As he was about to lunge at them, he felt someone hold him back. Two big brown eyes were looking up at him.

Damn eyes.- The tomb robber thought as he decided to get his revenge when his annoying but cute hikari wasn't around.

Once the Egyptians calmed down, they joined Honda in placing their gifts under the huge Christmas tree. Meanwhile, the brunette was confused as to how his friends were so coordinated with their clothing. On second thought, maybe it was better if he didn't know. He had a feeling it was going to result in painful injuries, and he for one wanted to enjoy his vacation.

While they were waiting for the others to arrive, Yami, Yugi, and Mokuba were off in one corner, discussing a secret or something like that. Occasionally, one of them would glance over towards the doors as if expecting a certain someone to walk through them. So far, it was only the servants milling around. Bakura was fuming over his costume. Why couldn't he get the elf or Santa outfit? Hell, the reindeer one was definitely way better than this. Ryou tried to keep his yami calm and stopped him from sending a servant or two to the shadow realm. Malik was trying to have a decent conversation with Honda about motorcycles, but Marik wanted to make out, in front of an audience no less. Marik was as successful as someone trying to get Jou to go on a diet willingly.

Soon enough, Mai, Anzu, and Otogi made their appearances. The girls giggled at Bakura's outfit, causing him to scowl and glare in their direction, but they thought the tomb robber looked adorable in that snowman outfit. Anzu mentally cursed. She wished she had the naughty Mrs. Claus outfit in her size. That way, she and Yami would be matching.

Mai merely raised a brow at their coordinated outfits, once she calmed down. The partridge was even dressed in festive clothing, and boy did it ever look pissed off. She too wore an outfit, a naughty Mrs. Claus one at that. "Cute outfit Yami. It really brings out your eyes."

"That's the same thing my aibou said," Yami replied with a smirk. If he wasn't with Yugi, he may have been interested in her. "You look absolutely naughty in that. Does someone need to be spanked?"

Laughing Mai sauntered into the room past a stunned Anzu. "Only if you promise to use your hand." She threw him a wink before moving over to the Christmas tree. –This thing is huge! How on earth did they haul this thing in here?-

"Sure thing," Yami teased back, not seeing a jealous Anzu. He then went back to his conversation with Mokuba and Yugi.

Looking at Anzu, Otogi wondered what was up with her. As long as she wasn't interested in a certain brunette, he could care less about her love life. He walked past her and headed over to the large Christmas tree. –Damn, that is huge.-

As soon as Anzu came back to the real world, she realized that Yami didn't even notice her sexy outfit, but rather Mai's. She glared at the blonde but sighed. It wasn't Mai's fault she was gifted in many areas that Anzu was not. –If I can get Yami alone, then…. - The dancer smiled as several thoughts ran through her head. This was going to be a memorable Christmas.

Finally, Jou arrived at the mansion. He appeared a little tired. Okay, he looked like he didn't get much sleep, but he was trying hard to cover it up. After placing the gifts under the tree, he joined in the conversation.

Elsewhere, Seto was hard at work and so were his employees if they wanted to keep their jobs. Today was like any other work day. His personal assistant was five minutes late. It wouldn't matter anyway, since he was definitely going to fire her.

Looking over at the statistics, he smirked. Sales were higher than he expected. Many companies were sending in orders, meaning they already sold out. The manufacturing companies worked overtime for the past few days trying to get the first shipment out and into the stores. He knew there were going to be returns, but that was to be expected. Still, he figured there were enough people that profits would still be high. After all, duel monsters was still a big hit, and with Yugi Mutou as the game king, there will still be an interest in the game.

After placing back the report, Seto turned his attention to his computer. There were still several things that needed to be taken care of such as this year's finances and next month's budget. He couldn't predict next year's budget, because there were too many variables to consider.

A pink head popped into the room and blue eyes narrowed at the intruder. What did she want? It had better be important as he had better things to do than to watch her pathetic attempts to flirt with him.

"Sir, you have an urgent call from Robert," she nervously said, playing with her hands. It was a bad habit. She often fiddled with her hands when she became nervous.

One brown brow was raised as he picked up the phone. He noticed her lingering at the door and waved his hand to dismiss her. He didn't pay her to stand around and watch him work. A dog could do a better job, and it would cost less to hire it.

Bowing, she quickly apologized, retreating back to her desk. She let out a breath that she didn't even know she was holding. –That was a close one. It was only five minutes. - Turning to her desk, she picked up a folder and began to look through the data.

Once he was certain she wasn't eavesdropping. Seto answered the phone. "What seems to be the problem, Robert?" He hoped he would have a mansion to come back to.

A nervous cough was his answer before his chauffer tried to answer his question. "Well… You see, sir…." How did he get roped into this? One look at those puppy dog eyes, and he was moving against his will. "There seems to be trouble with Bakura and Marik."

"What kind of trouble?" Seto asked, now more worried than ever. If those two dark spirits were involved, then there was bound to be severe damage and injuries. He hoped his little brother was okay, and the same went for his puppy. The others were capable of taking care of themselves. It wasn't like he cared about them. Unfortunately, his brother just had to be friends with them.

"So far Yami has prevented them from starting any type of shadow games, but that doesn't deter them from causing chaos," Robert informed him. He couldn't think of anything in particular, but with Mokuba urging him, it was hard to think. Now he regretted being that close to the younger Kaiba. How could he say no to that face?

"Bring the car here, I'm going home," Seto commanded. Apparently, someone needed to keep those two idiots in line, and he was the person for the job. –Damn, why can't the pharaoh deal with them? I have better things to do than to chaperone a party.-

"Yes sir."

Upon reaching the mansion, Seto found one pissed off tomb robber chasing one tomb keeper around the room, yelling several death threats. The brunette didn't even need a translator to know it wasn't nice. Both Ryou and Malik were chasing their darker halves, trying to calm down their respective partners. Yami was protecting his hikari while Otogi, Honda, and Jou were protecting the girls as well as his brother. At least they had their priorities straight.

"Enough!" Seto yelled uncharacteristically. He was set to kill, particularly two dark spirits, who couldn't keep their tempers in check.

Surprisingly, the two spirits abruptly stopped their chase to stare at the CEO in disbelief. Seconds later, they were plowed over by their respective partners. As for the others, they relaxed once the tension was diffused. Mokuba, Mai, and Anzu crawled out of their hiding places.

"What the hell is going on?" Seto demanded to know as he crossed his arms over his chest and began to tap his foot. There had better be a good reason for making him leave his office early when he could have been working. "Well?" he inquired when no one offered an answer.

It was Bakura who answered. He tugged on his snowman's outfit and literally growled. "You would be angry too if you had to wear this damn outfit." A few snickers could be heard.

Seto blinked a few times. Was the tomb robber actually wearing that? If he wasn't that infuriated, he would have noticed that earlier. It had taken a lot for him to maintain his composure. Coughing, he glanced around the room, noting how they were dressed. Somebody must have coordinated their outfits. That someone must have been his brother and Yugi. Who else could convince the others to go along with this?

Tension filled the air once more as silence reined supreme. It was so quiet crickets could have been heard if they were actually outside the mansion, but they weren't due to the massive mounts of snow. A few people could be heard moving around or shifting. The servants were going about and fixing the décor that either of the spirits knocked over.

Nervously shifting her weight, Mai wondered when someone was going to break the tension filled air. This was more nerve wracking than dueling, even if there was no prize on the line. Well, her life would be in danger should one of the spirits become provoked. Seeing as no one was doing anything, she might as well before she exploded. She popped in a random CD from their selection and picked a random song. "Let's dance." She latched onto Jou's wrist and dragged him into the center of the room as the song started to play.

A hand clamped down onto Honda's wrist before the brunette could even register the song starting. In no time, Honda was in the clear area with Otogi as his dance partner. He snapped out of his stupor and danced with the dice master, much to his delight.

Yugi and Yami soon joined them on the dance floor. Actually it wasn't a dance floor, but there was enough room for them to dance without knocking over the décor or bump into other people. As they were going there, the pharaoh noticed Seto's glare. He at first thought it was directed at either Marik or Bakura, but the CEO wasn't even looking in their direction. Instead, Seto was glaring at Mai. This was good news, which he gladly shared with Yugi via their link.

Ryou had a hard time convincing Bakura to dance. The tomb robber's pride had been viciously stabbed several times and then left to die. There was no way he would willingly look like an idiot. No way! With his determination set, Bakura tried to ignore his hikari. That was until Ryou decided if he couldn't get Bakura to dance, then the next best thing was to cuddle. Moments later the tomb robber caved in and allowed himself to be led to the dance floor.

As for Malik and Marik, they waited until Bakura had willingly let himself be pulled to their make-shift dance floor. They wanted to see how long it would take for the tomb robber to cave in and even placed bets on the exact time. Needless to say, Malik won, meaning he was going to be on top for a change. Marik grumbled the entire way to the dance area.

Even though this wasn't part of their plan, Mokuba was all grins. He knew his brother was very possessive and hated sharing with others. Of course, Seto didn't mind sharing with Mokuba as long as it was within reason. Perhaps his big brother would take some initiative and ask Jou on a date or something like that. Bouncing towards their expensive CD player, Mokuba appointed himself as the DJ for the party.

Anzu stared in disbelief. She couldn't believe Yami was dancing with Yugi out of all people. Her mind came up with several reasons, but none of them seemed to be logical. There was no way the pharaoh could be gay, not when a stunning girl like herself was around. Frowning, she marched over to her large purse and started rummaging through the contents. She swore she packed those two items before she left her house.

Meanwhile, Seto was glaring at a certain blonde woman. How dare she touch his puppy! He had half a mind to walk up to her and let her have it. However, it would reveal that he was interested in Jou, which was something they did not need to know. If she sunk her claws into his puppy, then all bets were off. Having his attention on the blond dancers, he didn't notice three sets of eyes which were full of mischief watching him.

The third song started, and Seto couldn't believe Jou was still dancing with her. Marik and Bakura traded partners, trusting each other not to do something funny with their boyfriends. Yugi was dancing with Honda while Yami danced with Otogi. Why did the others change dance partners while Jou had not?

The dancer was still going through her large purse. Mokuba was dancing solo near the CD player. As for the servants, they finished cleaning the mess and joined the party. Some of them found dancing partners and the rest mingled around the refreshment area. They were still cautious around both Marik and Bakura since they tended to be volatile.

By the fifth song, Otogi and Honda were hanging out at the snack table. Jou danced with Yugi, much to Seto's relief. The CEO knew Yugi wasn't even remotely interested in his puppy. They were more like brothers and that was how it was going to stay, if Yami and Seto had their way. Yami danced with Mai, to Anzu's fury. Bakura decided he had enough of dancing and was lounging on one of the couches. Ryou joined him and decided to continue their cuddling session, which the tomb robber secretly enjoyed.

After eleven songs, the group decided to listen to them rather than dance. Yugi had taken over as DJ, but figured it wasn't necessary to change the CD after every song. That left him with time to mingle.

Armed with mistletoes, both Yugi and Mokuba tried to get Seto and Jou underneath one. Sadly, their intended targets would move before the vertically challenged imps could even reach high enough. Actually, it was more like finding something tall enough to stand on top of. They did get it over Bakura and Ryou, which wasn't hard considering the fact they were both sitting. The tomb robber didn't mind and gave his hikari several deep kisses even if the mistletoe wasn't over them. Marik and Malik, on the other hand, were a completely different story. After a few times, the dark spirit nearly took his hikari right then and there if it weren't for the pharaoh smacking him on the back of his head.

As for Honda and Otogi, they were discussing the latest trend in the gaming industry, namely Seto's new game. It had been a wonder how they were able to keep the shelves stocked for as long as they could. Otogi managed to save one game for himself, but he only read some of the manual. He was too busy to play the actual game. Honda only heard about it and wasn't going to risk entering a game shop, especially during that time of year. He was extremely glad he didn't when the dice master informed him of the past few days.

Mai, Anzu, and Jou were talking about anything except for fashion. The poor boy was a lost cause in that department. Besides, he didn't have enough money to spend on clothing, especially since he needed to pay for other thing like the bills. So they ended up discussing things such as the upcoming tournaments. This led to a discussion on what they were going to wear. Before Jou knew what happened, he had already agreed to go to the mall with Mai and Anzu as his fashion consultants. What did he do to deserve a fate like this?

Chuckling at Seto's attempts to kill the two girls by glares, Yami made his way to the former high priest who was sitting by the window sill, watching the puppy. It didn't take a genius to figure out how Seto felt about the blond, not with the way he had recently been acting. "Kaiba." The pharaoh called, announcing his presence near the CEO.

Wrapped up in his heated glaring, Seto didn't even hear the dark spirit approach him, let alone hear his name being called. He was severely tempted to snatch his puppy away from those bitches and claim him as his own.

"Kaiba?" The pharaoh called a few times. He received the same answer each time, no response. "Seto?" This was bound to get a response, but alas, it failed.

Last night the mutt had waltzed onto his property to deliver a couple of packages. Once they were gone, he went down there to see what they were. When he reached his mailbox, he was surprised to find Otogi still lingering around his place. He was about to call security when he noticed the seriousness on Otogi's face. His curiosity got the better of him.

"So when are you going to ask Jou on a date?" The pharaoh asked, making himself comfortable. He figured the brunette would snap out of it eventually.

That night he and Otogi had a long conversation about a certain blond. He discovered things he never knew about Jou and many of his opinions were changed as a result of that. Seeing Jou in a new light, he found himself respecting his determination and courage. Earning his trust was a completely different matter.

Yami continued to ask embarrassing questions until he received Seto's attention, which wasn't for awhile. "When are you planning on proposing to him?" This definitely caught Seto's attention.

"What?" The former high priest managed to stutter. His glare settled on Yami as he came back to reality from wherever he was in the first place.

The pharaoh smirked, watching the normally composed Seto become tongue tied and completely flustered. His eyes were full of mischief and knowledge, which spelled disaster for the unlucky person. "I never thought you'd go that far with Jou, especially the way you act around each other. You know I never thought he was a screamer. I bet your neighbors must have heard you going at it. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if the entire neighborhood heard." He paused in his speech to notice how red the CEO had become.

"That is pure nonsense," Seto said, halfway in between a growl and a stutter. It wasn't true. He had not even received a kiss from Jou, let alone sex. "I didn't do anything with that mutt." The brunette managed to say in his defense.

If possible, Yami's smirk became more mischievous. "You did admit to them just now. I even asked you twice for some of the questions, and you agreed to both of them." The other didn't need to know that he was in a trance like state.

"I agreed to no such thing," Seto fumed, the hue on his cheeks becoming much deeper. He could put a tomato to shame by now. Also he caught the attention of everyone in the room or at least they looked his way for a moment or two.

Shifting close, Yami whispered, "It's nothing to be ashamed of. I know both Malik and I would be more than happy to give you advice should you decide to actually do it." He then pulled back, smiling at Seto's reaction. "Maybe you should call a healer for that fever of yours. You wouldn't want it to hamper your romp with a certain 'puppy.'"

I hate you. - Seto thought with much anger and embarrassment. He then abruptly opened the window as wide as possible as if it was his last life line. "It's too hot in here, and I need fresh air." He knew the pharaoh wasn't going to buy that excuse, but a few dense people would.

"Sure you do," Yami replied, rolling his eyes. He never heard of as lame an excuse as that. Actually, he heard some pretty lame ones from both Jou and Honda when it came to turning in their homework. Now it was time to be serious. "You can't keep hiding forever."

"I do not hide," Seto stated with annoyance. If there was one thing, Kaiba Seto did not hide from his enemies nor did he run away. He was no coward, which certainly helped him make his way to the top. "And I don't run away either. What are you getting at?"

Shaking his head, Yami sighed. They may be adversaries or opponents, but he knew the brunette more than Seto would like him to know. It was definite; Seto was in denial, which wasn't just a river in Egypt. "You're hiding your feelings, because you're afraid of how he would react. You can't deny it." He raised his hand when the brunette opened his mouth to protest. "I know these things since I have already gone through it."

He was at first hesitant in telling Seto, but he knew it would take a lot for the CEO to come out and admit his feelings for Jou. It wasn't a matter of sexual preference, because Jou actually liked the billionaire. "When I first had these feelings for Yugi, I didn't know what they were, and yes, I admit I was scared. There's nothing wrong with being frightened. It's how you respond that counts. Anyway, once I figured out how I felt, I thought he wouldn't accept me as his lover. You don't know how often I wanted to hold him and comfort him, especially after what he had been through. I promised myself I would tell him if I managed to get a body. Ever since then, I've never regretted telling him. Besides, he's very good in bed." The dark spirit suggestively nudged his companion while winking.

Needless to say, Seto was definitely shocked by the pharaoh's confession. He never would have guessed Yami was that type of person. As far as he was concerned, the pharaoh seemed too interested in duel monsters to even consider a relationship, more specifically with the same gender. Then again, it was no surprise since they did share one body prior to their relationship. It was then he realized the last statement. Apparently, Yugi was not as innocent as he appeared to be. "What if he rejects me?"

"You'll never know unless you try," Yami answered. He leaned back, allowing the tension to flow out of him. "Life is like duel monsters. You must decide whether to risk an open attack or to play it safe, and be on the defensive. Besides, you can never predict the outcome of a duel."

"I'll think about it," Seto calmly stated, before looking out the window and watching the snowflakes slowly drift down towards the earth.

"Don't forget what I told you," Yami reminded him.

From a plush chair, a certain female dancer smiled. She noticed how Yami was away from the others. It didn't matter if Seto was in the same area, because he wouldn't care what she did. Reaching behind her, she grabbed the pink furry handcuffs and the mistletoe. She stood up and slowly made her way to the pharaoh, who appeared to be in a deep conversation with the brunette.

From their positions on the couch, both Otogi and Honda noticed the dancer on the prowl. They were wondering what she was up to since they saw both the handcuffs and the mistletoe. Otogi was interested since she seemed to be heading in their direction. There was no way he was going to lose to her should she take an interest in his companion. Honda, on the other hand, was anxious. What if she was giving him a chance, now that she knew Yami wasn't available? He had to look calm and collected, even if he was a nervous wreck on the inside.

Bakura and Marik both rolled their eyes. They knew who she had in her sights and were glad it wasn't either of their partners. If it happened to be, no one (not even the pharaoh) would stop them from sending her on a one way trip to the shadow realm.

She has mistletoe. Maybe she actually likes me. - Honda hopefully thought, as she appeared to be approaching him. As long as she was with him, he didn't mind if she used the handcuffs, though he preferred black or blue. He supposed it was a girl thing or something like that. Girls were a complete mystery to him.

She had better not try anything. - Otogi angrily thought. He became twice as pissed when he saw the man of his affections was looking at her in a love-struck manner. After all he did, she wasn't going to leave this party without a bruise and definitely not with Honda.

As she approached them, Honda felt his heart beating faster. He started fidgeting in his chair, not once looking in her eyes. Caught in his worry, he didn't notice the dice master glaring at the dancer.

Making her way over to Yami, Anzu calmed herself down. She was not going to pass up this opportunity. All of a sudden it appeared her love interest was going to leave. Picking up her pace, she rushed to the pharaoh, running past a stunned and disappointed Honda. Somehow she managed to run over Bakura in the process.

Just as Yami had finished his conversation with Seto, he noticed Anzu heading towards him with a branch of mistletoe and a pair of pink furred handcuffs. His first reaction was to panic. Next he sought an escape route just as Bakura was plowed over.

The tomb robber peeled himself off the floor. He had been run over by a reindeer again! That did it. The reindeer was dead meat. He didn't care if it was Anzu in a skimpy outfit. Bakura jumped to his feet and charged at the dancer. "Reindeer, you're dinner!"

Anzu's eyes widened as she realized what she did. She accidentally ran over Bakura in her haste to get to Yami. Now she was going to pay for it. "I'm so sorry." She profusely apologized while running away from the enraged tomb robber. "It was an accident. I swear!" Anzu continued to profusely apologize, but it didn't seem to work. At some point, she dropped the mistletoe.

Once again, Ryou ran after his yami. He swore he was going to get a good workout just trying to keep the tomb robber from killing someone or sending that poor person's soul to the shadow realm.

The reactions of the others varied. Marik and Malik broke out into a song, "Bakura Got Run over by a Reindeer." The hikari managed to sing it in key while his yami was a different story. At least, Marik managed to sing the correct words. He should since there was somebody accompanying him. Seto was amused. He only wished he could have a copy of this. To his surprise, Mokuba was filming the entire scene. The CEO was definitely going to ask for a copy of this. Yugi was worried for Anzu, even though she kept hitting on his boyfriend. No one deserved the fate Bakura had in mind. Well, there were a few people, but that was a different matter all together. Yami was glad that she was being chased and thus didn't interfere. He shuddered at the thought of her reaching him with the mistletoe and the handcuffs. Mai was worried. As much as she wanted to help Anzu, she knew what Bakura was capable of and didn't want to make another trip to the shadow realm. The staff managed to keep out of the way.

Otogi wandered to where Anzu had dropped the mistletoe. He picked it up and walked over to where Honda was slumped over. Raising the object, he was prepared to get that kiss when someone bumped into him.

"Otogi?" Honda managed to squeak after the dice master landed on top of him with a branch of mistletoe in hand. Seconds later, an irate Bakura passed by, still promising death to the dancer. "What's up with the mistletoe?"

"Well… I thought… we could… you know," Otogi stuttered, much like a lovesick high school girl. Actually, he was in high school, but he certainly was no girl, even if he acted a bit feminine at times. –And I really wanted that kiss too. - His cheeks were now red.

Honda knew he was fooling himself when he thought Anzu might like him. His hopes came crashing down when she walked past him, completely ignoring him. He should move on, and he knew he felt something for the dice master, but he denied it. There was no way, he swung that way or that was what he thought. –Although, he does look cute with that blush. - Looking up at the mistletoe and Otogi on top of him, he cupped the other's chin before being forced to look his way. Seconds later, his lips were against the dice master's in a bruising kiss.

Caught completely off guard, Otogi didn't respond for a few seconds. Once he came to his senses, he returned the kiss with equal passion and softly moaned. Moments later, they pulled back due to a need for air. "Did you know you're a damn good kisser?" Shaking the mistletoe over them, he pinned Honda once more before kissing the brunette.

Honda didn't have a chance to reply verbally, but he wrapped his arms around Otogi's waist. He also deepened the kiss. –I could get used to this. -

Meanwhile, Bakura was still chasing the reindeer (a.k.a. Anzu) around the room. So far they had managed to avoid injuring anyone, and the damages to the property were kept to a minimum. The servants caused some damage as well when they jumped out of the way. They didn't want to be visiting the hospital any time soon. Yugi kept moving away from where the two were running. He was short and therefore easily overlooked. Yami and Seto stayed at the windowsill where they could watch the scene without being plowed into. Mai was caught between wanting to help Anzu and her fear of being sent to the shadow realm again. Mokuba wisely stayed out of the way. He was closer to the walls since the two tended to run where there was space. Jou was with Mokuba, as he too didn't want to be run over.

Grinning mischievously, Marik stuck out his foot, causing Anzu to trip and fall onto the ground. He laughed maniacally when Bakura couldn't stop his momentum and tripped over the fallen dancer only to crash into the tree. The said tree then collapsed onto a surprised Yugi, who was then buried underneath its green foliage.

Upon seeing Yugi being buried alive underneath the Christmas tree, Seto couldn't help himself. He let out a silent chuckle, even if it was at the expense of Yugi. So what if his lover was near him? It was the last thing on the brunette's mind. Soon enough, he had to lean against the wall so that he wouldn't fall over. It took every ounce of his will power not to explode in laughter. He was even struggling to keep a smile off his face, but he was failing miserably. As many times as he tried to reason with himself, he couldn't seem to get that smile off his face nor squelch the laughter that threatened to erupt.

As for Yami, he was in shock when the tree tipped over. One minute, he was watching Bakura and Anzu go at each other. The next second Bakura tripped over Marik's foot and plowed right into the tree, causing it to fall on top of his poor Yugi. Jumping to his feet, the pharaoh rushed right over towards his hikari, not even noticing the fact that he bumped into Seto causing the brunette to almost fly out of the window. "Koi, say something! Anything will do!" Yami called to his hikari in a panicked voice. As he reached the Christmas tree, he wildly began to search for Yugi underneath the massive green foliage. In his haste he forgot about the ornaments that hung from the tree and cursed loudly when he felt their sharp points.

The others just stood or sat there and watched. They were still in shock. How was the tomb robber able to move that tree alone? Actually, it had to do more with the momentum he gathered by running around before crashing into the tree.

Speaking of which, Yami glared at the said tomb robber and pushed him off the tree. "What are you waiting for? You're the one who caused this! You and your tree tipping ways!" He continued to search for Yugi but he was careful to avoid the sharp ornaments.

"What?" Bakura yelled in surprise. If it weren't for Marik, then he wouldn't have tripped in the first place. The other dark spirit had purposely tripped the dancer, which caused him to trip on her. Now that he thought of it, everything was her fault. If she hadn't run him over, then none of this would have happened. He was going to send her to the shadow realm the first chance he had.

"Bakura," Ryou warned his dark half. He knew something bad was going to happen to someone, but he didn't know who. After being around the tomb robber, he learned which signs meant what. This one meant he was going to send someone to the shadow realm or kill someone. In either case, the result was not good for some unlucky person or group.

"… Fine," Bakura grumbled. His chances of actually scoring with Ryou were slim if his hikari was in a pissy mood. Besides, it wasn't like he was helping the pharaoh out of a mess.

Still the others stood by and watched, aggravating Yami to no end. "Are you waiting for an invitation?" The pharaoh inquired, looking expectantly up at the others. He was pleased when most of them decided to help dig out his hikari.

Seto yelped as he was pushed out of the window. He found himself stuck in a snow bank, which was right against his mansion. Someone was going to dearly pay for this. He was just thankful he didn't decide to allow this party to be held on the second floor. Struggling, Seto attempted to pry himself free from the snow, but failed since his waist and upper body was buried underneath the frozen particles.

The yelp caught Jou's attention. He rushed past the panicking pharaoh and the servants who volunteered to help him. Running towards where he heard the person yell he found himself at the open window, looking outside for that person. He thought it was a prank, but then again, Kaiba Seto was known for being serious. It was then that he saw a pair of legs waving back and forth in the air. Laughing, he wished he had a camera to capture the moment. It was something he would like to remember, but he knew someone would destroy the evidence once he found out about it.

He turned to see who would help him with freeing Seto. Mai was busy taking care of Anzu, making sure she wasn't hurt or anything. Maybe she was actually interested in the dancer? Ryou kept an eye on his dark spirit. There was no telling what an irate Bakura would do. Mokuba was helping Yami free Yugi from the tree. Otogi and Honda were making out on the sofa. –It's about time. As much as I hate to interrupt their moment, I need someone to help me with Kaiba. -

Honda looked up from his make-out session with Otogi to see Jou standing above him. "Do you mind? I'm kind of busy."

"Well, I need your help for a moment," Jou answered, glancing towards the window. He figured he should hurry before Seto caught a cold and then blamed it on them. "Kaiba fell out of a window and is stuck in a snow bank. I need you to help me dig him out."

"Sure thing," Honda agreed, moving his new lover aside. He assured Otogi they would continue once Seto was back in the warm room, being his usual scowling self. His lover reluctantly agreed, but only since Jou helped them get together. It wouldn't help if Seto caught a cold or something before they had a chance to make out.

Moments later, both Honda and Jou were out of the mansion and digging around the CEO. Bakura had even tagged along to get pictures of Seto in the snow bank. It wasn't the pharaoh, but he wasn't going to complain. After the humiliation he had been through, he wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to get humiliating pictures of the stuck up high priest.

Once free from his frozen prison, Seto glared at Bakura who had the camera in hand. He was about to run after the tomb robber when he slipped on a patch of ice. Cursing, he glared at a laughing Honda and Jou. It just wasn't fair.

Suddenly, the snow that was on the roof was no longer was on the roof. It had fallen down due to the loud noises being emitted by the party guests. Yes, the people in the room too noticed Seto's condition. They had managed to dig out Yugi before Seto had been removed from the snow bank. Mokuba even caught his brother on camera, though he wasn't going to show it any time soon. He liked receiving his allowance.

Jou didn't even have time to blink before a sheet of white came cascading down on him. Since he wasn't completely buried like a certain CEO, it didn't take long for him to get out of the mess. Somehow the snowflakes managed to get under his clothing, making him shiver. "All right, you might as well get it out." There was a second round of laughter as Jou made his comment. Fortunately, all the snow had fallen in their decent on the blond.

Five minutes later, everyone was back in the warm party room. The servants brought blankets and towels to the room. Seto had one thick blanket around him while Jou stood there shivering. He would have suggested the blond do the same thing, but it would mean admitting he actually cared about Jou.

"Jou, you should get out of those wet clothes," Yugi softly suggested, handing over a towel. The snow on the roof had melted a little, causing Jou's clothes to become wet. The little hikari didn't like to see any of his friends sick, especially his best friend on Christmas. Today was a day of celebration and not complaining about being ill.

"Fine," Jou acquiesced before stripping down to his red thong with chibi dancing reindeer prints. He really didn't want to do this, but he didn't want to make Yugi more worried than he already was. It was then that he remembered the thong Otogi had given him earlier that day. He was now completely and utterly mortified when he saw everyone looking at him.

"Nice ass you have there. You should wear that more often." Marik commented, looking at that region. He was tempted to give Jou's ass a good slap, but one look from his hikari prevented him from doing so. Between the two, he was definitely not going to give up sex with Malik.

"Wow, I never thought your package was that large." Mai whistled. She had the fortune of seeing the blonde's front side and would have been turned on if she was into boys, but she wasn't.

A flash went off. "Now that's for the photo album. Don't worry high priest, I'll send you some copies." The flash went off yet again. "Maybe I should send this to that one porn magazine. You do look hot in that thing."

Yami raised a brow at this. "Interesting choice of under garments. It's a rather unique way of getting into the Christmas spirit as they would put it."

"See, I told you that thong would look good on you," Otogi chirped as he cuddled next to his new boyfriend. He laughed when a blush made its way across Jou's cheeks. "Now aren't you glad I made you wear it? I know someone is." He glanced over at a certain brunette who was ogling Jou.

Seto was scowling at his guests. How dare they make those suggestive comments about his puppy! He should have them kicked out of the mansion, but what they said was true. Just as he was about to do something about it, Yami wrapped a blanket around the blond.

"While we wait for the hot chocolate, I suggest we watch a movie," Mokuba said, trying to help Jou out of the embarrassing situation. It wouldn't help if the blond was too embarrassed to make a move on Seto or accept an advance from him. The little imp bounded over to where the entertainment station was and popped in a random tape.

As everyone settled down on the chairs and sofas, a shower curtain could be seen and the water was running indicating someone was taking a shower. They had no clue as to who was on the tape, since it definitely was not professionally done. While they were waiting for something to happen, they made guesses as to who was in the shower when a familiar voice was blasted through the speakers, causing everyone to blink with disbelief. They glanced over at Seto, who was now blushing and scowling at everyone.

Seto couldn't believe someone filmed him while he was singing in the shower. Judging by the height of that person, it must have been either his brother or Yugi. Mokuba had better access so that made him the prime suspect. In either case, it was still humiliating and degrading. His eyes widened just as his video self was about to sing that one song. Fumbling with the remote, he pushed the stop button in time to prevent that song from being sung.

"I never knew you could sing," Jou complemented the brunette, even though Seto didn't take it that way. Well, at least Seto sang better than another brunette, who made the dogs howl whenever he started to sing. –And you don't sound half-bad either. -

"At least you don't sound like a dying cow," Bakura quipped, glancing over at Honda. He could care less what others thought of him, and he certainly didn't know when to keep his mouth shut. His hikari merely shook his head. "What?"

"That wasn't funny," Honda growled, wanting to strangle the tomb robber. He was held back by Otogi and settled for glaring at Bakura.

"Looks like someone has been practicing," Mai commented, adding her two cents. She couldn't believe someone like Kaiba Seto would actually be singing in the shower. It wouldn't surprise her if someone such as Jou or Honda did it.

Anzu was rendered speechless. She never thought he was capable of doing something like that, especially since he would consider it a waste of time or effort. The servants were thinking the same thing as well. They never heard Seto singing in the shower, but if they did, they kept their mouth shut for fear of losing their jobs.

"Just when you think you know someone, they catch you and surprise you with things you never knew about them," Yami stated while looking over at the embarrassed Seto. He thought he knew his hikari, but Yugi surprised him by accepting the relationship. Also, the little hikari caught him completely off guard with his naughty and perverted side.

"Whatever," Seto mumbled. He managed to stop the tape before that song came. That was not how he envisioned his confession. Besides, the others didn't need to know about it or see his actual confession. He had enough trouble with his self-confession. It was going to be harder actually saying it in front of his puppy.

"Maybe we should open presents," Yugi suggested, wanting to diffuse the tension. He then bounded over to where they had transferred the presents after the Christmas tree fiasco. Once there, he started passing out the presents with help from Yami, which made it go faster.

After the presents were passed out, they decided to open presents in no particular order. The first person to open a present was Mokuba, since it was his party after all. He opened the present from Anzu, which turned out to be a festive sweater. It was a disappointment, but then again, it was Anzu giving the gift. She wasn't exactly the type of person to give naughty gifts or was she?

Next was Yugi. He picked up a random gift from his pile. Tearing through the paper, he found a plushie of the Dark Magician. Considering that was his favorite duel monster, it was no surprise when he received one. He thanked Honda for the gift.

Bakura decided to go next, considering he wasn't patient enough to wait. He decided to go with the gift from Malik and Marik. Shaking it, he wondered what it could be, since it was so light. It had better be something he could use. When he opened it, his eyes nearly fell out of their sockets. He couldn't believe they would give him something like that.

"What is it?" Mokuba curiously and innocently asked.

"Something tells me I don't want to know," Yami sighed, shaking his head. He knew anything given by either Malik or Marik would have a sexual theme to it. Silently, he hoped that they wouldn't give him something like that.

Ryou poked at Bakura's gift, wondering what it was exactly. It appeared to be a leash of some sort, but the collar was extremely small. This wouldn't fit a dog, but they didn't have a dog in the first place. It was more for a rodent or a bird. "We don't have any pets."

"That's not what it's used for," Marik said rolling his eyes. "It's a cock leash. You're supposed to use it on your partner."

Bakura just glared at the two and was going to do something about it when he felt his hikari. He looked into those two big brown eyes and the blush his hikari was now sporting. "What?"

"I wouldn't mind you using it," Ryou whispered before burying his face into Bakura's snowman outfit. He couldn't believe he said something like that. Not only that, but he was willing to let his dark half use it on him.

Marik was the next person to open his gift. He chose to open the gift from Malik, since he figured he might as well continue the sexual theme. Besides, he knew his hikari well enough to know that he was getting something he could use during sex. Just as he thought, he received a remote controlled vibrator and a set of love beads. This was going to go well with those leather restraints he had lying around their home.

Yami opened his gift from Otogi. It was nothing of the sexual nature, since the dice master didn't know what to give the pharaoh or if Yugi was still innocent, which he was definitely not. His present was a few packages of duel monster cards as well as some of Otogi's game.

Honda was next. He specifically chose to open the present from his new boyfriend. Upon opening it, he was surprised to find a set of keys and wondered why Otogi would be giving him keys. Then he found a picture of his real present, which happened to be the latest motorcycle. They were definitely going to go for a ride on it.

Picking through his gifts, Jou noticed one that didn't have the sender's name on it. He opened it after Honda finished thanking Otogi personally for his present. As soon as he opened it, he immediately regretted choosing to open that one first and in front of his friends. He picked up the giant bottle of chocolate flavored lube and asked, "Who's the wise guy that gave me this?"

"Don't look at me," Malik said as everyone turned their attention to him. Naturally they would since he was most likely the person to send it. "I didn't buy him anything like that. Besides, I have much more creativity than that."

"Well if you didn't send it, then who?" Jou inquired, hoping against all odds that it was Seto. He shuddered at the thought of Anzu sending him something like that. Then again, she was more interested in Yami than anyone else. He picked up the leather outfit, causing a note to fall out of it. –Meet me here an hour after the party has ended. Signed your secret admirer. -

"What does it say?" Yugi asked this time. His curiosity was getting the better of him, and he would have persisted if it weren't for his darker half. He reluctantly agreed that Jou deserved some privacy even if he was very curious about it.

"It's nothing bad," Jou assured him. He was already embarrassed enough and placed the items back into the box before placing it in a safe place. It was something he could use if a certain brunette returned his feelings.

Otogi opened the first gift he set his hands upon, which happened to be the one from Jou. After carefully unwrapping it, he revealed a box of condoms, and they weren't just any condoms. They were the high quality ones to boot. Plus, there was a tube of lube that came with the box. "Jou!" The dice master screamed in disbelief.

"Now you'll actually put them to good use," Jou replied with a knowing smile on his face, causing Otogi to blush and hide behind Honda.

"I'm glad you finally found someone," Yugi beamed at Honda and Otogi. He was wondering when the brunette would move on since he knew Anzu wasn't interested in anyone but Yami and that Honda treated Shizuka more like a sister than a girlfriend.

"Same here," Yami agreed with his hikari. He often felt Yugi's worry through their link, especially when it came to their friends. Sometimes having a big heart was a pain, but Yugi wouldn't be Yugi if he didn't have one. Besides, it was one of the traits that made his hikari attractive in his eyes.

When they finished opening their presents, they decided to call it a day. It was becoming dark, and most of them wanted to return to their families for a Christmas dinner. The first people to leave were surprisingly Marik and Malik. The dark spirit said something about trying their new gifts, especially the ones that were given to him by his hikari. There was no doubt Isis was going to need ear plugs after that night. Bakura and Ryou were the next couple to leave. The latter wanted to help clean the mess, but the former wanted to try the present given to him by Malik. In the end, he allowed Ryou to stay if they hurried back home so he could test the present. Honda and Otogi were next. No one knew exactly what they did after they left, but the following day, a certain someone was having trouble walking. Mai and Anzu left almost at the same time. They were disappointed since they didn't receive their kiss and their love appeared to be unrequited. Yami, Yugi, and Jou were the last people to leave the Kaiba mansion. They stayed as long as they could before they had to leave for dinner or at least, that was the case for the short couple. As for Jou, he used that excuse to stay out of his home and linger around while waiting for that hour to be over.

As she was heading to her home, Mai heard someone sniffling. She knew she shouldn't be wandering around especially when the sun was setting and the night was drawing closer, but she couldn't leave that poor person out there in the cold. Damn, Yugi must have rubbed off on her more than she liked. Sighing, she headed over toward the source of the sound. To her surprise, she found Anzu curled up on a bench, crying her eyes out.

"Go away," the dancer mumbled miserably. It had finally sunk through that thick skull of hers. Yami was happy in a relationship with Yugi and no longer was available. As much as she denied it, there was no way around it. She couldn't force the pharaoh to leave his hikari and hook up with her. It would only serve as a barrier between them as well as her other friends. She didn't want to give up her friendship with them, especially over a crush.

Mai shook her head. There was no way she was going to take orders from the brunette. Besides, it would ruin her image or she thought it would. In any case, the shorter girl definitely needed help, and she wasn't going to leave until she figured out what it was. Then maybe she'd help or at least find a way to help. "No way, hun. There's something bothering you. I know you don't want any help, but I want to help you."

"There's nothing you can do," Anzu wailed. She clutched her Shining Friendship plushie, which was formerly hidden. "There's nothing anybody can do. He's taken, and I have to accept that fact." Finally, she was no longer in denial.

"I'm sure there are plenty of guys out there," Mai said, mentally wincing at her own words. –And girls too. - She hoped Anzu swung that way, but she wasn't certain. Also, she didn't want to chase the dancer away before she had a chance to seduce her.

"I guess you're right, but there's only one of him," Anzu said as she shifted around, revealing her curvy body. After all that dancing, she no doubt had a good figure. She tended not to flaunt it in front of others, but this outfit revealed her secrets. "No offense, but why are you helping me?"

The blonde bit her lip. Should she confess or should she wait until another time? If she chose to confess, it would be like catching the dancer on a rebound or something like that. On the other hand, she didn't know if she could work up enough courage to tell her later. "Promise me you wouldn't interrupt me or scream before I'm finished."

Anzu nodded her head. Whatever her companion wanted to say it was important to her. The least she could do was listen. Besides, Mai was caring about someone other than herself for a change. It was something the brunette noticed about her. That and she noticed how the blonde was trying to be friends with not only her but the others as well.

"You know ever since I met you and your friends, I thought you were a bunch of goodie two shoes," Mai confessed, finding her feet suddenly interesting. She wasn't the type of person to admit her feelings, but here she was. "After dueling Jou, I learned there was a lot more to dueling than winning. There was determination, courage, honor, and all that good stuff. My cheap tricks harmed me in the end, because I wasn't giving my best. I had to re-evaluate myself. Was I good enough to win without my cheap tricks? Did I have what it took to be a good duelist? Can I be proud of my wins?" Man, she did sound corny, but it was the truth. "Life is like a duel. The way you handle attacking or defending is pretty much the same way you deal with problems. If I can't handle that in dueling, then I certainly can't in life. That was when I decided to change for the better. As I spent more time with you and your friends, I learned what the meaning of friendship was. I learned that friends support you no matter what. They help you when you're down and comfort you when you're sad. They give you advice when you're lost and care enough to spend countless hours listening to you."

Anzu nodded her head, not knowing where this was going. Yet, she felt this was important to the explanation. She didn't interrupt with any of her questions.

"To make things short, I like you," Mai confessed. She silently prayed that Anzu wasn't going to scream or go running back to her home.

If Mai was willing to confess, then Anzu felt she should give her a chance. After all, it wasn't everyday she had an admirer. She had no clue about Honda and didn't give Yugi a chance either. "You know I'm still trying to get over Yami, but I'm willing to try."

Mai's spirits were lifted. That was more than she had expected and beamed. "I know. I'm just glad you're willing to give me a chance." She moved closer to the brunette and sat down besides her before pulling the dancer closer to her.

Moments later, Anzu interrupted their heart filled moment. "If you don't mind, maybe we can continue this at my place?"

"Definitely."

Once the hour was up, Jou wandered back towards the Kaiba mansion, anxious to meet his secret admirer. He was completely nervous and his hands could barely hold his sack of presents. On his way there, he couldn't help but wonder why this person chose this location to meet. His first guess was the person lived there. It meant Seto could have sent him the present. Then again, Mokuba and a few of the servants lived there as well. Perhaps, that person wanted to meet at a different location?

When he reached the mansion, the servants allowed him to enter. They had been given orders by Seto to let the boy back in. If they should fail, they were going to find themselves out of work. One of them was to show the blond to Seto's bedroom.

Jou wandered behind the servant after leaving his sack of presents in a safe place. Actually, Mokuba volunteered to look after them since he wanted the two of them to hook up. As they walked towards the bedroom, the blond decided to do a little sight seeing. He looked at the different décor, lining the hallways. Apparently, someone else must have done this, because it didn't seem to suit Seto's personality. Besides, he couldn't imagine the brunette taking time away from his company or his brother to lavishly decorate these hallways.

As soon as they stopped at the door, the servant knocked on the door, signaling the arrival of Jou. "You may enter." He then bowed and walked off without so much as giving him an explanation.

Shrugging Jou entered the room and nearly fainted when he realized which room it was. This happened to be the bedroom of one Kaiba Seto. He knew it was the CEO's room, because who else would have a large mural of a Blue Eyes White Dragon and a very organized room? It certainly wasn't him or Mokuba. He knew for a fact that Mokuba had a messy room, but it was nowhere as messy as his was. "Kaiba, what is the meaning of this?"

No one answered. In fact, it was so quiet he swore he could have heard a pin drop if it did actually fall. Jou figured he must be in the bathroom. Yeah, that had to be it. Nervously, he made his way to the door on the other side of the room, which he thought to be the bathroom.

Silently, the door closed behind him, and a figure emerged from behind it. The said person literally pounced on the unsuspecting Jou, effectively pinning him to the ground. He was disappointed that the blond wasn't wearing that outfit he had so thoughtfully given him, but it didn't mean he couldn't convince Jou to wear it just for him.

"Ack!" Jou yelped just as he was being tackled from behind. He was about to swing his fist at his attacker when he realized it was Seto who was pinning him down. A bright blush made its way to his face. "Kaiba…. What are you doing here?"

"This is my room, Jounouchi," Seto reminded him. He also thought Jou looked rather cute with that blush. Before he knew it, he was moving closer to the blond and soon enough, he was kissing Jou with much passion.

Caught completely off guard, it took Jou a moment before he responded. This was completely surreal. It was like a dream but better. He hoped this moment would never end. Suddenly, he felt a tongue move against his lip. He knew Seto wanted him to open his mouth; however, he decided to be playful and refused to open it. When he felt a hand slip under his pants and brush against his cock, he gasped; thus, allowing Seto to fully explore his mouth. He moaned as he felt the brunette's tongue against his tongue and teeth.

Alas, they had to separate due to a need for air. Panting, the two of them recovered from their first passionate kiss. Jou's cheeks were still a bright red from the blush, and Seto's had a faint trace of one.

"Kaiba," Jou started to say. He was cut off when a finger was placed on his lips. As tempting as it was to suck on the digit, he refrained from doing so.

"Call me Seto," Seto said with some warmth in it. There was only a handful of people who called him by his first name. Most of them were dead by now. Besides, it was a privilege given to the select few. It meant he had some sort of relationship to that person, and Kaiba Seto wasn't one to have any kind of relationship with others, even if it was friendship.

Needless to say, Jou was caught off guard once more. He never thought Seto wanted to have a relationship with him or even be friends. From the way the brunette kissed him, he knew Seto wanted to be more than friends. "Did you send me the lube and leather outfit?"

"What do you think?" Seto inquired, amused by his puppy's denseness. It was one of the traits that made Jou cute, and he wouldn't have it any other way.

"Yeah," Jou said, his blush becoming deeper. "I was hoping you were the one who sent me that." He really was. If it was Anzu, then he didn't know what he was going to do. As much as he liked her, he only saw her as a friend. It would be annoying if he had to be around her for long periods of time.

"Is that so?" Seto was curious. Did Jou actually want him to be his secret admirer?

"Yes," the blond managed to squeak out. Gods, he wanted to crawl into the nearest hole and hide. Unfortunately, the person of his affections was still pinning him down.

"Good," the CEO stated with a smirk on his face. If the blond had said something else, then he was going to hunt down that person and make him or her pay. Luckily, that person did not exist, and therefore was spared an agonizing trip to the hospital. He then began to ravish the blond.

Being the good puppy he was, Jou squirmed under all the attention he was receiving from his master. He moaned as Seto's lips or hands found a sensitive spot on his body. Gods, Seto was definitely good at this. He must have practiced or something. Those lips on his body were heavenly and his hands were very gentle. Forming a coherent thought became so hard it was almost impossible, as he was lost in a sea of pleasure.

Seto mentally took notes on where Jou's sensitive parts were. They would become useful when they actually had sex. Before it could become out of hand, he stopped as he thought Jou wasn't ready to take it up to the next level. He didn't want to scare away his puppy before he had a chance to bed him. "Why aren't you wearing the outfit I bought you?"

Honey eyes looked up at him, clouded with lust. "I didn't know who sent it so I wasn't going to take any chances, but if you want me to, I'll wear it just for you."

Getting off of Jou, Seto helped him up to his feet. "You know where I'll be waiting." He gave the blonde's ass a good squeeze once Jou was standing. He always wondered how Jou's ass would feel, and he decided was good time as any to see how it felt. Just as he thought, it was a firm one, but not too firm. It wasn't soft either.

"Why did I get the feeling you were going to do that some time or another?" Jou asked in exasperation. He then proceeded to walk to the door before he turned and looked back. "Does that mean we're together?"

Seto gave him that looked which in Seto language meant, "Why are you asking me a stupid question?" Of course, Jou didn't understand Seto language so he was standing there totally confused. "Yes, we're together unless you'd rather not be."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

3 And so ends my Christmas fic. Well, at least you didn't have to wait till next Christmas to find out the results. XD Maybe I'll write a lemon. It depends on the response.


End file.
